FUEL protestors are planning a series of lightning strikes against refineries in an escalation of their war against high tax levels.

Campaigners say they will blockade fuel depots at short notice in the months between now and a general election to try to increase pressure on the Government.

But the protestors claim each blockade will be short-lived, with the aim of hitting the fuel companies and not creating widespread shortages.

The Farmers for Action (FFA) group staged a 12-hour picket of the Shell terminal at Jarrow last week, but did not prevent any lorries entering or leaving the depot.

FFA North-East coordinator Andrew Spence said: "We're going to be returning to the refineries again and again and again.

"We're going to keep the pressure up and we're going to shut the refineries, but we will only be there for short periods - maybe a day at a time.

"We do not want people to revert to panic-buying. We want to hit the fuel companies so they put pressure on the Government."

He said protestors were constantly monitoring the three fuel depots in the North-East, at Jarrow, Sunderland, and Seal Sands on Teesside, to decide the most effective time to strike.

But he said a heavy police presence had so far prevented them from returning to the blockades.

Hard-core campaigners have vowed to continue their protest until UK fuel duty matches levels in other EU countries, despite some concessions in Gordon Brown's mini-budget in November.

But Mr Spence admitted that some hauliers had decided to abandon the campaign.

He said: "A lot of hauliers are saying that now they are getting the reduction in excise duty they don't want to carry on. They have walked away, which is very disheartening."

A Northumbria Police spokeswoman said the force did not have a continuous presence at the Jarrow depot, but they were constantly monitoring the situation.

Susan Hancock, chief executive of the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers, said short-lived blockades would cause delays but would not mean major problems.

She said: "It is not going to make a great deal of difference and I don't think it is going to have any effect on supplies."