French President Emmanuel Macron (left) made his remarks concerning an EU carbon price while at a conference in Brussels, ahead of a summit of EU leaders. Emmanuel Macron Twitter photo.
EU carbon price would tax goods from non-EU countries not doing enough to tackle climate change
French President Emmanuel Macron told a conference in Brussels on Thursday that the European Union must set a minimum price for carbon.
The move would tax imported goods made by non-EU countries that are not doing enough to take on climate change.
Macron has been a staunch supporter of policies that fight climate change. This puts Macron at odds with US President Donald Trump who pulled the US out of the Paris Climate Accord five months after taking office in 2017.
According to Macron, France will increase the price of carbon emitted from 44 euros per ton this year to 84 euros per ton in 2022.
Macron concedes that there are flaws in the carbon trading market in all of Europe.
“We need a European price floor for carbon. I know it won’t be easy, there will be resistance from all around,” Macron told a conference in Brussels on financing sustainable growth prior to a summit of European Union leaders.
Macron argues the minimum price would make greener investments more appealing, but for the policy to work, the price would need to be accompanied by a tax on goods from countries outside the EU who do not “make the same environmental choices”.
The French president says there should be a target for EU budget spending to aid in the transition to a green economy. He adds that no EU spending should be “hostile” to the environment.
“I think a target of 40 per cent of the budget would allow for this transition to be ambitious rather than measured, as it is today.”
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