Rachel Reeves has just delivered drivers another kick in the teeth with yet another tax raid. When will the Chancellor stop waging war on Britain’s 42 million motorists?

Not a day seems to pass that Reeves isn’t dipping into pockets for more taxes, and drivers have been among the most regularly stung. Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) car tax rises are coming this April, with bills up by as much as £200. Reeves’s reversal of fuel duty starts this September as well, despite the oil crisis in the Middle East. Now she has eyes set on older vehicles, with cars almost 40 years old set to feel the pain.

Has it really come to this, Chancellor?

Cars registered before 1986 are exempt from VED charges under the rolling tax exemption rules. Reeves hasn’t touched that – yet.

It means cars registered before 2001 are charged based on their engine size: models below 1549cc pay £220 per year, while those above 1549cc pay £360.

Oh sorry, Labour’s latest inflationary price hikes from April will actually make this £235 and £375 from April 1. Can’t forget that.

With new fees looming, campaigners called for a 50% VED reduction for cars aged 20–39, claiming that high taxes on older models were forcing “functional vehicles to be scrapped”.

They argued that “keeping existing cars is greener than building new ones, as it preserves embedded carbon”. They suggested that a new “Transition to Historic” tax discount would encourage repair and support the UK heritage industry.

This seemed like a sensible policy. Generally, building a new car produces significantly more emissions than continuing to run an old one. It felt like a genuine solution to the county’s net zero credentials.

The Treasury’s reaction, rejecting the plan, wasn’t at all surprising, but it shows what really matters to Labour. Money.

A 50% cut would slice Treasury revenues, leaving Reeves with the thing of her nightmares – another hole in the public finances.

Treasury officials even admitted as such, accepting that revenues from motoring taxes help to ensure the Government “can continue to fund the vital public services and infrastructure” needed across the UK.

How long is it until Labour scraps the historic tax exemption scheme introduced under the Conservatives in 2014?

​​Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden previously warned he was “concerned” that the Chancellor could scrap VED immunity for 40-year-old vehicles. Does he know something the rest of us don’t?

Nothing has been announced yet, and it likely isn’t on Labour’s radar for now, but Reeves has proved time and again that drivers are an easy target for tax hikes. Nothing has changed.