§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what support has been given to LPG572W conversion in terms of (a) the cost of conversion, (b) fuel tax and (c) vehicle excise duty (i) prior to and (ii) in the Budget; and if he will make a statement. [55851]
§ Mr. BoatengIn 2001–02 the Department of Transport, Local Government arid the Regions paid nearly £5 million in grants through the Powershift programme to help to meet the costs of converting vehicles to run on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). Duty on LPG was cut in Budget 2001 from 15p to 9p per kilogramme and a commitment was made not to increase duty in real terms until 2004 at the earliest. Budget 2002 froze duty on LPG in cash terms. The graduated VED scheme for cars first registered after 1 March 2001 offers a reduction of up to £10 a year for cars using LPG.