Springtown Fuels website shows the price it charger for Heating Oil in Derry and the price it charges for Heating Oil in Donegal. Have a look below at its prices.

Derry Heating Oil Prices

150 Litres – £ 95.00 (€114)

200 Litres – £ 122.00 €166)

300 Litres – £ 176.00 (€211)

400 Litres – £ 228.00 (€274)

500 Litres – £ 278.00 (€334)

600 Litres – £ 333.00 (€399

700 Litres – £ 389.00 (€447)

800 Litres – £ 440.00 (€528)

900 Litres – £ 497.00 (€596

1000 Litres – £ 552.00 (€662)

Donegal Heating Oil Prices

200 Litres – € 193.00

300 Litres – € 275.00

400 Litres – € 350.00

500 Litres – € 420.00

600 Litres – € 504.00

700 Litres – € 588.00

800 Litres – € 656.00

900 Litres – € 738.00

1000 Litres – € 820.00

Overcharging

So, it charges €152 more for 1,000 litres for fuel to Donegal customers than it charges its Derry customers for the same amount of the same product.

I have no doubt that this is not Springtown pulling a scam on its Donegal customers. I have no doubt that this is the irish Government pulling a scam on its own taxpayers and voters by adding duty on the oil – even though it is a company based in Derry selling it.

Common Market

The idea of the Common Market, which became the EU, was that companies could sell across borders. Companies in different countries would compete with each other without duty being added as it used to be when goods came in.

It looks like Ireland wants the benefits of the EU and thinks it is a one-way thing. It wants only to take and not to give. It’s like the ridiculous VRT tax. It is the Irish Government that is breaking EU law here and if it was ever challenged in a EU court they would lose – and they are using the garda to assist their lawbreaking.

Duty

It used to be that if you made a product in one country you would have to pay duty in it if you sold it in another European country. The Common Market was supposed to abolish the duty so that companies could compete equally across borders for the benefit of the consumers across Europe.

However, the Irish Government is flouting this principle. It is one-sided too. I don’t see garda cars being used to stop Derry cars and lorries from buying their petrol in Muff.

Losers

A Derry taxi driver told me that drivers from his company have been stopped before for picking people up from Donegal to take them to Derry. It never happens the other way around.

The losers in all of this are Donegal families who have to pay a fortune in prices for heating oil – €152 more for 1,000 litres than their Derry counterparts. It just shows you how much you are paying in tax every time you buy heating oil. It’s the kind of item which should be duty-free. I’m just astonished that the Northern Ireland assembly don’t have more to say about it.