CO₂ price “politically dead” – opinion

It was “tactically unwise” for social democratic environment minister Svenja Schulze not to coordinate her initiative for a price on CO₂ emissions better with finance minister and party colleague Olaf Scholz, writes Jan Drebes in an opinion piece in Rheinische Post. “Now the project is almost politically dead before it could even be put in writing,” writes Drebes. He adds that “an additional levy on petrol and heating oil” sends the wrong political signal and that the government had other instruments to reduce CO₂ emissions. “It is difficult to communicate that an SPD minister of all people is now striking out against consumers while her party is still reluctant to send a clear message to the coal industry,” writes Drebes.

Read the opinion piece in German here.

For background, read the CLEW article German env minister plans CO₂ price concept to boost climate action.