THE Labour party’s European candidate for the Ireland South constituency Niamh Hourigan has criticised the unjust burden placed on domestic energy users with the latest round of carbon tax increases.
The increase on May 1st added almost €20 to the cost associated with filling a 900L tank of home heating oil, she said, and it also sees a cent added to every kwh of natural gas used, an additional 90c per 40kg bag of coal and 20c per bale of briquettes.
Under the same increase, around 15c was added to every litre of petrol and diesel at the pumps in October.
‘The jet fuel aviation industry is a major pollutant and contributor of carbon to the environment but yet has escaped the burden of carbon taxes,’ she said.
‘Ordinary motorists on the road are paying an additional 15c per litre of fuel and ordinary households have had €20 added to the cost of filling a tank of kerosene. That kerosene is very similar to the kerosene used in jet aviation and yet is excluded from carbon taxes and this is blatantly unfair.’
Ms Hourigan added that the climate emergency is one of the biggest priorities we need to face and that’s why she made ‘just transition’ a central pillar in her campaign.
But, in order for a just transition in terms of climate change to be successful, people need to feel that any taxes linked to the environmental change are applied in a fair and sustainable way, she said.
‘Clearly the way carbon taxes are being applied at the minute is not sustainable and I’m calling on both the Government and the EU to take urgent action on these issues and to rebalance the burden on those households who are already facing enormous challenges in meeting cost of living and energy demands at the minute.’
