GORDON Brown should not take the patchy response to the Dump The Pumps campaign to mean that public anger at petrol prices has been overstated.

The protest was organised at great speed and with few resources.

Even though fuel sales were not hit hard, the boycott still made its point: the motoring public are fed up of being taken for mugs.

Fierce competition has seen a rare drop in petrol prices this week. But we still pay more than most of the rest of the world to drive on poorly maintained and crowded roads.

The Chancellor must realise that this issue is not going to go away.