Despite the fuel price brake, petrol and diesel could possibly become even more expensive on June 1st. Strange statement by the Green Economics Minister Habeck: the car drivers themselves are to blame. But this analysis lets the real culprits, who are getting even richer, get off scot-free once again.
Now we have it officially, so to speak: Economics Minister Robert Habeck himself does not believe that fuel prices will fall from June 1st, at least not by the promised 35 cents per liter for petrol and 17 cents for diesel. Worse still: The Green politician does not even rule out that prices will initially go up further – despite the significant reduction in energy tax.
And who is to blame from the minister’s point of view? The drivers themselves. According to Habeck, they fill up less and are all waiting for the big drop in prices next week. Then everyone would let the tanks fill up again. Habeck’s conclusion: “Then the demand is much greater and petrol suddenly becomes an even more valuable commodity and then we lowered the price, but in reality it is going up.”
Citizens, especially commuters, are likely to feel that they are being made fun of. First, politicians promise them substantial relief – and instead they have to pay even higher prices. And they should be to blame for that.
With this ministerial logic it is such a thing. Anyone who is dependent on the car like commuters in the country has not been able to fill up less in the past few weeks. But anyone who has switched from the car to the bus and train with an eye on their own wallet, if that was possible, will not “eat up kilometers” by car pointlessly from June 1st.
Unfortunately, fuel prices are not the only ones that have been rising dramatically for weeks. Only a few can still afford not to pay attention to price tags. Habeck is making it too easy for himself when he calls out to drivers: “It’s your own fault”.
What Habeck is also studiously concealing: In view of the development in crude oil prices, refueling should have been cheaper for a long time than it was a few weeks ago. In any case, the Cartel Office, which reports to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, does not seem to be keeping a close eye on the industry.
dr Hugo Müller-Vogg is a journalist, book author and former editor of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ).
Now the mineral oil companies are even warning of an alleged impending shortage of spirt in the next week. This raises the suspicion that drivers should be lured to the gas pumps quickly – to fill up before a price reduction. Before you have to leave the car, refueling at inflated prices should appear to be a reasonable alternative.
One thing can be predicted independently of Habeck’s strange accusations: the price reduction that is mathematically possible due to the reduction in energy tax will not happen anyway. Even when the VAT was reduced after the outbreak of the corona pandemic, the mineral oil companies did not pass it on to their customers in full.
This will now be repeated with a significantly reduced energy tax. But this is not primarily due to the drivers. The mineral oil companies take care of that. Minister Habeck should deal with them – and not with their victims, the drivers.
