The government should refrain from increasing excise duty on petrol because unfair competition is arising across the border in Belgium and Germany, where petrol is currently much cheaper, said Jacco Vonhof, the chair of the Dutch small and mid-sized business association, MKB-Nederland. "From Amersfoort, it is cheaper to drive to Germany for your petrol and some groceries," he said on the radio program Sven op 1.
The owners of filling stations in the Netherlands are expecting large crowds of customers during the last days of June. That will be the last chance for drivers to refuel at the current rates, before the excise tax on petrol and diesel goes back up on July 1.