Private jets should be banned and the speed limit on UK motorways reduced to 60mph as part of a pre-emptive effort to ease the looming fuel supply crisis, according to leading climate and transport organisations.
The group – including Greenpeace and Transport and Environment – are calling on ministers not to “sleepwalk into a crisis” that could lead to severe shortages of jet fuel and spiralling petrol prices at the pump in the coming months.
Instead they are calling on ministers to prepare now by lowering demand for oil in a fair and orderly way.
Doug Parr, the chief scientist at Greenpeace UK, said: “Measures like lowering speed limits and banning private jets and short-haul flights would cause minimal inconvenience now and avoid much more painful decisions later on. By getting ahead of the problem, ministers can not only soften the blow for UK drivers and passengers – they can also cut climate emissions and put fairness at the heart of this crisis response.”
The Green party leader, Zack Polanski, backed the idea of banning private jets, saying many British families looked forward to their overseas holiday all year but now faced cancelled flights and ruined breaks because of “Trump’s illegal war in Iran”.
He said: “While ordinary people pay the price, the super rich are simply getting in their private jets at will – wasting huge amounts of jet fuel on unnecessary trips. The government should act now: put in place a temporary ban on non-essential private jet travel to save the summer holiday for the families who have worked hard to save for it.”
The head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, warned this year that the US-led war in Iran will have a similar impact to the combined effect of the twin oil shocks of the 1970s and the fallout of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Countries around the world have already been hit by rising fuel costs and analysts warn that the UK is particularly exposed to the jet fuel shortage, with a real risk of rationing as supplies fall to “critically low levels” just before a busy summer holiday season.
Many governments have already introduced measures to address the crisis from fuel rationing to limiting car journeys, cutting fuel tax to doubling down on renewable energy. Pakistan has reduced the speed limit on motorways and the government in Laos is asking people to work from home.
The intervention from Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Transport and Environment, Possible and Safe Landing includes calls for a levy on ultra-frequent flyers and short-haul flights that can be covered by train in under six hours.
A Greenpeace analysis shows that, taken together with a ban on private jets, these three measures could save nearly a million tonnes of jet fuel a year, or 8% of the UK’s annual consumption.
A separate analysis by the climate group found that reducing the speed limit on UK motorways by 10mph could save nearly half a million tonnes of fuel, or 1.5% of the UK’s road transport fuel use.
Anna Krajinska, the UK director at Transport and Environment, said the measures were needed to “protect our transport system from these unreliable and geopolitically exposed energy sources”.
She said the crisis exposed a “hard truth” the “UK remains dangerously dependent on volatile fossil fuels”. “The long-term solution is clear, the UK must accelerate the shift to new technologies, from electric vehicles to zero-emission aviation. Breaking free from fossil fuels won’t just cut emissions, it will deliver a more resilient, secure and prosperous future.”
A UK government spokesperson said: “UK airlines are clear that they are not currently seeing a shortage of jet or road fuel. We know people value their hard-earned holidays, especially as summer approaches, and we are working closely with industry to keep flights operating and help airlines plan ahead.
“While we are not planning to change motorway speed limits, and private aviation accounts for a small proportion of total fuel use, our contingency plans include all options for fuel prioritisation if needed.”