Fuel duty and VAT on petrol and diesel will rise by nearly 2p per litre from tomorrow (Wednesday) despite an eleventh hour call from motoring groups to get the Government to freeze prices.

And from April 1, 2010, following VAT’s return to 17.5% and an inflation plus 0.5p increase, a further 4p per litre is likely to be added to the cost of petrol and diesel.

“These April Fuel increases are no joke,” said the AA’s president Edmund King. “It’s a shame that this and other fuel tax increases will severely dent consumer spending and undermine the UK’s economic recovery.”

This latest increase will add more than £60 to the running cost of each fleet vehicle averaging 30,000 miles per year at an average of 40mpg.

Theo de Pencier, chief executive of the Freight Transport Association, said: “At a time when jobless figures are already sky-rocketing, the Government needs to understand that their actions will only add to them.”

According to Office of National Statistics, claims for Jobseekers' Allowance have risen sharply within the transport sector in 2008, with transport managers up by 114% and van drivers up by 60%.

UK pump prices ended the year up 13.2% for petrol and 21.2% for diesel, with diesel now around 9p per litre higher than petrol, compared to 4.9p per litre at the start of 2008.