I have chronic medical conditions. Some of my doctors are 75 kilometres away. Some are 100. There's no bus that gets me there, so every appointment means filling the car.

I'm on Centrelink. Right now, fuel takes 15 to 20 per cent of my income. That's before rent, before food, before the medication I'm driving to collect.

My husband looked at going back to work. We did the maths. With what it would cost him in fuel to get there and back, we'd be worse off than we are now.

I'm asking the Australian Government to permanently reduce the fuel excise from its current rate of 52.6 cents per litre.

I'm not the only one. Households, small businesses, farmers, tradies and transport operators are all paying more at the bowser, and conflict in the Middle East has kept international energy markets unstable and prices high. For people in regional and rural Australia, where public transport barely exists, there is no alternative to the car.

Fuel costs don't stay at the pump. Every truck that carries groceries, medicine and building supplies passes the cost on. A permanent cut to the excise would lower transport costs, ease pressure on prices and give households room to breathe.

Prime Minister Albanese, please permanently reduce the fuel excise and put in place long-term policy that keeps fuel affordable for all Australians.

If you're driving further than you can afford just to live your life, please sign.