On November 5th the price of gasoline fell by a whopping three dollars and last night it fell again. This time it was by an average of a dollar and 25 cents. The new price for a gallon premium is only $6.16. That is $1.25 less. The last time premium was that low was in February of 2002 when it was $6.21 a gallon. Regular dropped a full dollar and 31 cents – from $7.05 to $5.74. Diesel dropped 83 cents – from $6.96 to $6.13. Te last time diesel was that low was in April of 2005. So gas prices are at record lows and while he wants you to enjoy it, Prime Minister Dean Barrow warned against getting used to it.
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“Government is absorbing a loss in tax revenues but it is a price worth paying in order to bring the kind of relief to the consumer that we promised so we are very happy about it.”
Keith Swift,
Should consumers get used to this?
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“Well we certainly don’t want it to encourage a change in consumption pattern. We don’t want people to stop thinking about conservation and ultimately if the prices continue to fall internationally we would have to do a bit of a balancing act but that’s somewhere in the future. For now we want everybody to enjoy the benefits of low fuel prices and of course these low fuel prices also help generally with the economy, with productivity, with everything so we can all enjoy the ride.”
Keith Swift,
But noh get spoilt.
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“Absolutely, that is precisely the point.”
As to how much money government is giving up, back in February of 2002 when premium gas was at $6.21, government’s tax take was a little over $3 - more than half the cost. And while the low prices are good, the government is under some pressure from the IMF to re-institute the RRD to bring up sagging revenues. As Barrow hinted at in the interview, they will have to adjust the formulas.
