HIGHER CAR TAX FROM THE RIP OFF GOVERMENT

Nearly nine million motorists will pay more road tax under the controversial changes to vehicle excise duty, it has emerged.The Government says the reforms - which will cost around 44% of drivers more money - are aimed at penalising the most polluting vehicles.

(A third of car drivers are likely to be better off.

Official figures predict that 8.7 million vehicles will see tax increased in 2009-10 - all in the six most-polluting bands.
Exchequer Secretary Angela Eagle said five of the UK's 30 most popular cars would pay more under the changes.
They include the 2.2l diesel Land Rover Freelander, the 1.6l unleaded Toyota Auris, the 2.2l diesel Honda CR-V, the 1.8l unleaded Vauxhall Vectra and the 1.6l unleaded Vauxhall Zafira.
Ms Eagle gave the figures in a Commons written answer to shadow Treasury minister Justine Greening.
She said: "As a result of the Vehicle Excise Duty reforms announced at Budget 2008, in 2009-10, it is estimated that within the 13 new bands, a third of cars will be better off in real terms, and in total, approximately 55% of cars will be no worse off."
The controversial changes to VED were unveiled by Chancellor Alastair Darling in his first Budget, doubling the tax on some family saloons to £455.
They attracted criticism from all sides, with 50 Labour rebels signing a Commons motion branding the changes "retrospective" because they will apply to all cars registered since March 2001.
Sheila Rainger, head of campaigns for the RAC, told Sky News the changes don't seem to be about reducing pollution.
"If this was about going green then we would have higher charges for larger vehicles and smaller chages for less polluting cars.
"There is a problem with these changes, it applies to everyone who has bought a car since 2001, so how can that be about influencing future purchasing?
"You have already bought the car and you are going to get hammered by the Chancellor for having something you chose on the best information available seven or eight years ago.
"It is a really serious problem - what we want is people to buy news cars, they are always cleaner regardless of the engine size because of the technology, but now people are going to get stuck with more polluting cars so the opposite of the green plan is going to happen."
Shadow Chancellor George Osborne accused Prime Minister Gordon Brown of seeming to mislead Parliament over the figures.
Treasury officials said "nothing new" had been revealed by the figures