Fuel price reaches £1.09 a litre

The Kent garage blamed rising oil costs for the fuel price hike

The cost of fuel in the South East has continued to rise with a Kent petrol station charging £1.09 a litre.

On Monday, a garage in Langton Green on the Kent-Sussex border was thought to be selling the most expensive unleaded petrol in the region at £1.04.

Now the Proteus garage in Chartham, near Canterbury, has increased prices, blaming rising oil costs.

Fuel Lobby protesters have threatened oil refinery blockades next week in a campaign for tax cuts on fuel.

Last week, the average price in the region was 92.45p a litre which rose to 94p at the weekend, with more rises expected in coming weeks.

Prices increased sharply after Hurricane Katrina shut oil rigs and refineries in the US.

The Petrol Retailers Association has said it is not "inevitable" that most customers will soon be paying more than £ a litre for their petrol, but that prices are expected to fall in the autumn when demand traditionally eases.

Motoring groups have also called on the government to cut fuel excise duty to ease the burden on consumers of higher petrol costs.

Across the UK, average diesel prices now stand at 97.3p - up from 95.8p - and are expected to top £1 in the coming weeks.