The fact falling oil prices don’t seem to be reflected on petrol pumps in the Isle of Man has prompted the Trade and Industry Minister to write to the Office of Fair Trading.

David Cretney, who says he is regularly contacted about energy issues, wants to know more about the differential in domestic heating costs between the Island and the United Kingdom.

He also wants to know whether the OFT will reduce the fuel surcharges being applied on Steam Packet sailings for both passengers and freight. He told Manx Radio:

"I think they are concerns which are reflected throughout the community on the Island.

"We see regularly on the television, and (hear) on the radio, the price of a barrel of oil is substantially less than it was only a few weeks ago, and yet that price doesn't seem to be reflected as much as it has been in the UK.

"Only yesterday, we heard that supermarkets are in competition, in terms of the price of petrol at fuel pumps being down to around 95 pence a litre.

"If you look anywhere on the Island the price is nowhere near that. I accept that there are economies of scale questions, and we obviously don't have the population here but, at the same time, people are concerned about that."