EU eyes tax as tool in climate change fight

(Reuters, 16 Nov 2020) Current EU energy taxation rules only reflects the cost of making and transporting a product, without accounting for its toll on the environment.

Taxation will not escape the European Union's plans to curb planet-warming emissions, and levies should be revamped to reflect climate and environmental costs, the head of EU climate policy said on Monday.

Brussels is planning a far-reaching overhaul of policies including Europe's carbon market, farming subsidies and CO2 standards for cars as it seeks to slash EU emissions to 'net zero' - meaning that all emissions must be offset in full by absorption measures - by 2050.

As part of those plans, the European Commission will revise EU energy taxation rules by next summer.

Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans said on Monday the bloc needs to rectify the current system, where taxes reflect the cost of making and transporting a product but fail to account for its toll on the environment.

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Reuters, 16 Nov 2020: EU eyes tax as tool in climate change fight