Big step forward in fixing climate change!

An exciting report has just been released, recommending ‘an independent carbon tax with dividends’ – which is the Citizens’ Climate Lobby preferred solution to climate change and air pollution.

As we understand it, Policy Exchange, widely viewed as Britain’s leading think tank and the author of the report, has the ear of the Conservative Party which could mean a major step towards the UK Government adopting a carbon fee and dividend.

“If the world is committed to limiting average temperatures at less than 2 °C above pre-industrial levels, a well-designed economy-wide carbon price is an indispensable part of a strategy for efficiently reducing greenhouse gas emissions while also fostering growth.”
From: The Future of Carbon Pricing: Implementing an independent carbon tax with dividends in the UK, by Policy Exchange

Take 1, action! Write to your MP about the report

This is a brilliant opportunity to get in contact with your MP.

Here’s an excellent example by Tim Prior, Bristol.

We recommend the following:

Please do email us a copy of your email/letter to [email protected]

Take 2, action! Write to your political party about adopting carbon fee and dividend

If you are a member of a political party, please write to them and ask if they will look at the Policy Exchange’s report and consider adopting Carbon Fee and Dividend.

Please do email us a copy of your email/letter to [email protected]

Key points

Read the summary of the report, with a link to the report itself, here:
https://policyexchange.org.uk/publication/the-future-of-carbon-pricing-implementing-an-independent-carbon-tax-with-dividends-in-the-uk/

Quotes from the report:

  • Steadily rising and economy-wide, paid by companies that sell fossil fuels in the UK
  • Structured around border adjustments
  • Fund dividends from carbon taxation that are returned directly to the public in an annual lump sum, to lock in political and public support for fighting climate change.
  • Allow a rationalisation of environment regulations without reducing environmental protection, as an economy-wide carbon tax will make a number of existing carbon taxes and policies redundant. Eventually at least 10 direct carbon taxes would be rationalised into a single unified price

The cross-party foreword by former Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling and former Conservative Party leader William Hague, includes:

  • the threat of climate change is too great for party politics to get in the way.
  • Cleaning up our own energy system will mean little if we simply outsource our emissions. In the absence of a unified global carbon tax, border carbon adjustments are essential to ensure that British businesses are operating on a level playing field with those that are foreign-based.
  • If carbon taxes are seen to unduly punish that average citizen, they will fail. That is why Policy Exchange’s idea of recycling the revenue from carbon taxation back to the people in the form of a ‘carbon dividend’ is worth exploring. It would make a carbon tax both progressive
    and popular.
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