Petrol accelerates to £6 a gallon

Petrol prices climbed to the £6 a gallon mark for the first time on record yesterday, with a litre of fuel costing over £1.32, according to the AA.

The rise means that the cost of petrol is up 6.93p per litre since the beginning of the year. Prices have climbed by 1.68p in the past week alone. Diesel is also on an upward trend, striking a new record of above £1.37 per litre on Wednesday.

"£6 a gallon is not just another milestone along the road to higher fuel prices, it marks the point at which the wheels start to come off mobility in 21st century UK," the AA's president, Edmund King, said.

"Lower income drivers, poorer rural residents, volunteer drivers, youngsters looking to their first jobs are some of the vulnerable groups struggling to stay on the road," he warned.