Voting is now open for the first European Fossil Fuel Subsidies Awards! CAN Europe together with CEE Bankwatch, CounterBalance, Friends of the Earth Europe, Green Budget Europe, HEAL, Oil Change International, Overseas Development Institute and WWF European Policy Office (the Awards Jury) are very excited to announce the start of the “European Fossil Fuel Subsidies Awards” public vote. *** Click here to vote and decide which of the worst subsidies should receive an Award. Make sure you […]
The EU budget in its current form is not a driver of sustainable development – neither in terms of how revenues are raised, nor how they are spent. A reform of the budgetary system to address and overcome current complexities could green EU budgets and enhance the transparency and visibility of the EU. Ahead of the presentation of the final report of the High-Level Group on Own Resources chaired by […]
James Nix, Director of Green Budget Europe, sent the following submission on 8 December 2016 in response to the Commission’s Directorate General of Competition public consultation. The Commission is proposing to exempt airports with fewer than 3 million passengers annually from State aid rules. Green Budget Europe argues this is a wrong-headed response to acknowledged subsidy dependence on the part of these airports. We note the Commission proposal to ‘block […]
Commission has made some progress on carbon intensity – but needs to go much further On 30 November, the European Commission published its Winter Package [1] – a set of legislative proposals aimed at boosting renewable energy and security of supply. Part of the legislation seeks to shape Member State law on capacity mechanisms for energy production, and the Commission has acted firmly to prevent market distortion, and allow electricity […]
On 2 February 2016 a package of measures [1] to promote the Green Economy in Italy comes officially into force, after approval by the Italian Parliament in December 2015. Among provisions on sustainable transport, waste management and protected marine areas, the Italian government commits to becoming the first EU country to track and publish all of its environmentally harmful subsidies on a yearly basis. These include, but are not limited […]
The coal industry is destroying the climate, yet banks keep financing it. We must call on banks to stop bankrolling climate change, cutting ties with the coal sector is an important first step. It is high time to keep coal, and all fossil fuels, in the ground. Support the call at: http://dotheparispledge.org
No real progress towards reform in the first half of 2015 according to a new analysis by Green Budget Europe. However, Belgium and France have taken significant steps over the last month Member States meet in Luxembourg on Monday [26 Oct] to discuss progress on removing environmentally harmful subsidies. However, the common EU process to track and cut subsidies is not being used by any Member State, and overall very […]
Luxembourg, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, is responsible for the EU’s highest per-capita level of fossil fuel subsidies. At €3,415 per person every year, Luxembourg’s fossil fuel subsidies are nearly one thousand euro higher than the next worst country, Bulgaria, at €2,479 per person, according to a recent IMF study [1]. €3,415 a year: Luxembourg’s level of fossil fuel subsidies per person Drawing attention to the data, Green Budget […]
Green Budget Europe Director James Nix writes in EU Observer: The G7 leaders’ meeting in Germany agreed on Monday to “decarbonise the global economy in the course of this century”. For Germany, the US and the UK, the commitment follows on from their existing pledges to cut emissions 70 – 95% by mid-century. But for Canada and Japan, the G7 statement signals significant change. For the last decade or more, […]
Green Budget Europe Director James Nix writes in today’s Financial Times: On June 1, six of Europe’s largest oil and gas companies (BG, BP, Eni, Shell, Statoil and Total) wrote to the UN calling for carbon taxation. This is a welcome development, signifying that many major fossil fuel companies now acknowledge the damage their products do to the world’s climate and, by extension, its inhabitants, present and future. Many commentators […]