Last week, the European Commission published the Country Reports – a detailed Member State by Member State assessment in the context of the European Semester. It concludes that EU countries should exploit the potential of Environmental Fiscal Reform (EFR). The bloc’s average of 6.3% of environmental tax take (in terms of total tax revenue) in 2014 was short of an indicative 10% goal set in 2011. GBE welcomes Brussels’ calls on Member States […]
As debate grows over how to protect and manage water services in Ireland, GBE highlights the need for a fair pricing structure that reduces waste and supports households equitably. An expert commission tasked with determining the best approach to fund domestic public water services in Ireland is shortly expected to outline its conclusions. The protection, management and maintenance of water services has been a key point of political debate in […]
Green Budget Europe, in collaboration with six civil society organisations*, held a policy briefing in Dublin discussing the importance of increasing the tax on diesel in Ireland ahead of the annual budget. Ireland buys the most new diesel cars per head of population (70% of all new sales). The European average is 50%, and countries where the sales of new diesel cars were high (e.g. Belgium, France, Spain, Sweden and […]
Budget 2017 provides a vital opportunity to re-balance car sales, cut air pollution, and improve health Irish people buy the most new diesel cars in the world. Car sales data shows diesel cars account for 7 out of 10 of all new cars sold in Ireland. “Globally, Europe is a diesel island. In the US and Japan diesel cars account for less than 5% of new sales. Europe, where diesel […]
Green Budget Europe, in collaboration with six civil society organisations*, held a policy briefing in Dublin discussing the importance of increasing the tax on diesel in Ireland ahead of the annual budget. Ireland buys the most new diesel cars per head of population (70% of all new sales). The European average is 50%, and countries where the sales of new diesel cars were high (e.g. Belgium, France, Spain, Sweden and […]