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THE CONTROVERSIAL CARBON tax is due to rise again next month but the abolition of another levy will offset its impact on the cost of fuel for vehicles.
The carbon tax, which is levied against heavy-emitting fuels such as oil, coal, natural gas and peat, is rising again as planned.
The increase is set to apply starting from October, when it will add just over two cents per litre to the cost of petrol and diesel.
The rate will increase from €41 to €48.50 per tonne of carbon dioxide on auto fuels from 12 October and all other fuels from 1 May 2023.
However, something different in this year’s Budget to previous ones is that the increase from the carbon tax on the price of oil is set to be offset by cutting the National Oil Reserves Agency (Nora) levy.
Revenue from the carbon tax is allocated to climate action measures such as retrofitting, agriculture schemes, and social protection for communities affected by climate action.
Speaking to reporters at a post-Budget announcement briefing, Climate Minister Eamon Ryan said that there are EU measures which are “very much targeted at electricity and gas, so I think it was appropriate to have a reduction in oil price as a supportive cost of living measure across the board”.
“It doesn’t reduce the Climate Fund. We’ve got agreement from Government that in any reduced revenue, the Climate Fund will still get the revenue in,” the minister said.
The Department of the Environment expects to release details in the weeks or months to come about further initiatives backed by the fund.
Ryan said that the move on carbon taxes and Nora was “an appropriate measure” that gives “added protection for some of those areas that are hard to reach”.
The Department of Transport, which also falls under Minister Ryan’s brief, announced that fare reductions on public transport that came in last year have been extended.
The move was welcomed but it fell short of some expectations that a further cut would be made to the cost of public transport tickets.
“We did face a choice, I faced a choice particularly, because any Budget, you’re constrained with what the overall envelope is,” the minister said.
“You have to look at the bigger picture as well, but also within our department.”
He said the focus instead is on measures like rolling out new bus services.
“We could just, say, do everything about cutting fares, keeping fares down. But if it’s a choice between that and rolling out new services, I think people also want new services, and I believe that should be our focus now.
He said the extension of the reduced fares “wasn’t an insignificant concession or win for us from Government, because it wasn’t cheap, but actually to be able to maintain those fare reductions and expand public transport, that’s the prize”.
Much of the discussion about climate in this year’s Budget is linked to efforts to bring down the cost of energy.
The minister said that attacking the climate crisis and soaring energy prices “go hand in hand”.
Responding to the Budget, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Oisín Coughlan said that it brought some welcome measures but did not go far enough to seriously reduce fossil fuel consumption.
“This Budget offers people some short term relief from skyrocketing fossil fuel prices but it doesn’t go far enough or fast enough to get us off fossil fuels for good,” Coughlan said.
“The expansion of the fuel allowance and the €400 lump sum are welcome but why are people on Working Family Payment excluded and why is there no increase in the basic weekly rate?” he said.
“And of course, while the Fuel Allowance is an essential sticking plaster the real solution is more insulation and retrofitting so people have warmer homes and lower bills with less pollution.
“The extra money for retrofitting next year is welcome but the target of 37,000 houses is far too low. This is an emergency. We should be insulating 100,000 houses before next winter.”
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Scrap the carbon tax. And scrap the Greens.
This is utter madness, the Government are out of control as well as out of touch !
This lot in power are brown nosing the green washing brigade
The perfect solution to this crisis more green tax
“Insulate and retrofit”. Eamons one size fits all solution is so flawed, the cost to retrofit and insulate most houses more than 20 years old makes this approach un viable. Trying to fit a 1930s -40s 2up 2down house with a heat pump and suitable insulation, along with all the the correct windows!!! Etc……. Paying the higher energy bills would be equivalent or less than the loan to do it in the first place!!!!!
@antisocialbarber: try it with a 1900s farmhouse believe me it’s not feasible. Assuming you can find the trades which don’t exist for old buildings
@ed w: I can only imagine. Any savings made through grants etc would be hoovered up by the trades….. if you could get them.. as you mentioned
Another dumb move from the Irish government.The levy on fuel reserves which Ireland desperately needs to insure there are no power cuts is far more important than the carbon tax.
@Don Hogan: The NORA levy is for oil, we don’t really generate any electricity here from oil so ditching the levy will have no effect on power cuts at all.
@Lee King Buckett: the NORA was introduced to put infrastructure in place to have reserve fuel supply in the event of a crisis..NORA are awash with cash. 2 cent of every litre… infrastructure is in place and paid for!! And you are right, it will have no effect on power cuts.
The greens don’t seem to realise that the first priority of a successful politician is to get re-elected!
Ill donate a fee trees to the government if they send this ape off to plant them and he doesnt come back. he needs to go ..ruining this country with tax on coal and fuel..its the only answer he has is to tax everything
@Diarmuid O Brien: Totally agree. He knows the other two need to keep him happy. Although I don’t think he’d have the spine to walk away from his one and only chance of ever being in government
Carbon taxes disappear into the governments black hole and where it goes nobody knows???
Minister for turf etc. tells us this tells us that about grants bla bla bla and nothing happens.
I know people say milk the system for all you can get. This guy is the master. He should come with a warning.
@Mary Nugent: we got the warning and the people who elected him have a lot to answer for. But Mehole saw the him as a means to an end and become the Man. People please remember all this next election and please please please just one or two ticks on the ballot paper. That will sort out the men from the boys.
40kg bag of coal has increased by 66.6% in the past twelve months and they are putting further carbon tax on it. It won’t be the cigarettes which land many older people in hospital this coming winter – rather pneumonia because they cannot afford coal to light their fires. Then to top that they want to ban turf cutters from supplying turf for sale. Shame on all of them.
Not just Ryan although he’s making himself redundant. FF/FG where always good at using smaller partners in government to do the nasty work.
@Spud Geshletter: you think this is FF/FG plan? Nah….this are the Green’s own ideas trying to force through what they can because they know it will be a very long time before they will get a chance to do so again and the other 2 are too scared to stand up to them for fear that they will pull out and force an election.
@Joe_X: Sooner we have an election the better.
@Joe_X: next goverment greens may well be gone but the policy will still be in place. Wont be easy to shift the two main party’s next election, few independents join them.
Hope I am wrong
And fags gone up to. Seriously, tbe gov trying to stem inflation? How’s this toxic Journal bot? ‘Fag’ is a 20th century term of endearment for a cigerette. ‘Bot-off!’…and obey Asimov’s rules.
@Keth Warsaw: Ah Keith, ever bemoaning the cost of living whilst smoking all his income…
as long as electric or alternative fuel options need a investment of 1000s of € more compared to a petrol/diesel car an increase in carbon tax won’t make people to switch cars. if someone doesn’t drive a lot an petrol or diesel price will always be the cheaper option compared to the initial cost of any electric car and electricity doesn’t get any cheaper anyway, regardless if used for a car or your fridge. personally I would still use diesel even if the price/liter hits 3€ as the price on the pump is only a tiny fraction of the fixed up-front cost of an electric car. a 60liter diesel tank gets me close to 1200km on my 10 year old car with average consumption of 4.5-4.6L/100km. no new car you can buy today can beat this, they all need more and mostly also have higher co2 emissions.
Out of decency and respect for the opinion of others we take the time to listen and try to see is there any common ground that cud be tolerated, but this man is unique, every time he opens his mouth leaves people shaking their heads in disbelief, the hard of hearing checking their hearing aids, pace makes jump in the chest of cardiac patients, I think some people actually lose the will to live, the majority of people are genuinely helping him to realise his dream but he’s going to have to wake up and smell the carbon, unless the world is playing the game our efforts are futile and a waste of money, the Irish people have had enuf of this man taking the food from their mouths to advance his own personal crusade to save the planet, the world is more complicated than u think Mr Ryan, wake up.
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