A councillor has questioned why petrol prices are around eight pence a litre more expensive than others.

Calne town councillor John Fisher tweeted his disapproval after paying 145.9 pence per litre for petrol at Tesco in the town last week.

He said: “Filled up at Tesco, Calne Wiltshire last night. 145.9.

"Why Tesco? This is significantly higher than in the towns around us."

“It’s only £1.38 for petrol around Melksham,” pointed out Paul Izzo on Calne’s Community Hub Facebook Group.

Now Coun Fisher is questioning why it costs an extra eight pence to haul petrol into Calne.

“This is blatant profiteering from Tesco who should be doing more to support people during the cost of living crisis,” he said.

“It should be the same in every town. It’s not fair that we are getting ripped off,” added Carolyn Goss, who says she is working two jobs just to make ends meet.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of individual retailers to set petrol prices, and this takes into account multiple factors such as transportation costs and volume of fuel supplied.

“Like other major petrol retailers in the UK, we don’t have one national price for fuel,” said Tesco.

“We work hard to be competitive in all areas, including the services and ranges offered within our kiosks and on our forecourts.”

So where is the cheapest place near Calne to fill up?

Chippenham

The cheapest fuel within 10 miles of Calne can be found at Sainsburys in Chippenham, at £1.36 per litre. This is according to data from Confused.com last updated on July 26.

Melksham

At £1.38, Sainsburys on Bath Road in Melksham ranks next best, although this is actually joint with Morrisons in Chippenham.

Allington

Taking out all of the other petrol stations in Chippenham and Melksham, it’s Esso in Allington, that takes third place. Unleaded petrol here was £1.40 as of July 26.

Lyneham

Once you reduce the radius to five miles, Lyneham ranks next best for a bargain, if you can call it that. Priced at £1.43, petrol from Esso in Lyneham is the best deal for Calne locals not wanting to travel far.

Calne

For residents who don’t have enough fuel to make it to the next town, the cheapest place for fuel in Calne itself is Tesco on Beversbrook Road.

As of July 26, Calne’s cheapest petrol was £1.45. This is almost 10p above what Chippenham residents pay.