Nigel Farage and Robert Jenrick staged a publicity stunt at Newhaven Services petrol station in Derbyshire's Peak District on Tuesday morning, subsidizing fuel to cut prices by 25p per litre and pledging to reverse the government's planned fuel duty increase. The Reform UK leader and shadow chancellor rebranded the station's price board with "Reform Refuel" and "25p off with Farage," dropping diesel to £1.43 per litre and unleaded to £1.21.

Jenrick climbed scaffolding to alter the display as Farage watched, later announcing that a Reform government would reinstate the 5p fuel duty cut in its first budget, funded by £13 billion in savings from net zero programs. Targets include scrapping heat pump grants under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, electric vehicle subsidies, mostly benefiting foreign manufacturers, and carbon capture projects. "Reform UK stands squarely with alarm clock Britain: the people who get up, fill the tank, drive to work, and keep this country running," Jenrick said.

Farage criticized the stealth tax rise, noting it would add about 6p per litre over the coming months. "The cost of living is really impacting… We’re going to get rid of lunatic green levies. In particular, I’m thinking about heat pump subsidies," he stated. The party demands Chancellor Rachel Reeves cancel the hike immediately, calling it the "worst possible moment" amid soaring oil prices from the Iran conflict.

Fuel duty has been frozen at 57.95p per litre since 2011 and cut by 5p to 52.95p in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with annual extensions through 2025. Reeves announced last November it would unwind from September 2026 to March 2027, then rise with the Retail Prices Index, potentially adding 10p-12p per litre by 2029 and costing £2.4 billion annually to reverse. Oil hit over $100 per barrel on Monday after US and Israeli strikes on Iran before easing to $91 Tuesday.

Conservatives and Liberal Democrats echoed calls to scrap the rise, but Reeves resisted in Parliament, prioritizing de-escalation and a new app for price transparency. She hinted at updating the 45p tax-free mileage rate, unchanged since 2011. Local Labour MPs dismissed the event as a "pathetic" or "silly" stunt, urging focus on potholes and council services.

Press questioning turned to Reform's Iran stance, with Farage previously backing US action but now opposing deep involvement, citing Britain's limited resources. The stunt precedes May 7 local elections, where Reform aims to pressure Labour on living costs.