DRIVERS may have pulled out of the forecourts across Scotland a few pennies richer last night, but many were unimpressed at the pumps.

The move to placate motorists came as fuel prices at the pumps reached unprecedented levels, with diesel passing the 140p a litre mark, and the average cost of petrol now 133.46p a litre. Just a year ago drivers were paying 116.71p a litre for petrol and 117.42p for diesel.

Student Emma Brown at first welcomed the decrease of 1p per litre on petrol, which she thought would help her get to and from her events management course in Edinburgh, and around the city to see friends.

However, as she filled the tank of her Ford Focus with 50 litres for a trip to Inverness, it became clear the £66.50 bill would be reduced by a relatively small amount.

She said: "It's not much. It feels like I get about half as much mileage out of a tenner's worth of petrol than before, so this is not a huge difference. I only use the car to get to my course and socially, but it adds up."

Will Ellis, 49, welcomed the drop when he filled up in Edinburgh. "It is good but it's not enough," he said.

He added that it was "justice" that North Sea oil and gas companies would contribute to halting fuel price increases.

Cab driver John Storrie said: "On an 11-hour shift, I will use about £20 or £25 of fuel so 1p is nothing to me.

"We would need it to be back down to about £1 a litre for diesel for us to be standing at the same point as about five years ago."