Guardian Australia · Josh Butler · Monday 30 March 2026
Diesel and petrol prices surged 10% and 8% in a week across major cities as the government reassured the public on supply levels and dismissed the Coalition's call to halve fuel excise.
The government says supply is fine while prices climb ten percent in a week — the rhetorical equivalent of a dentist saying 'you won't feel a thing' while reaching for the drill. The Coalition's answer is to halve the excise, which is cutting the price tag off a problem you built over fifty years of refusing to diversify. Both sides are arguing about the receipt while the house runs on a single fuel line through the Strait of Hormuz.