Letter to the Editor, EurActiv (published July 24 2007)

Energy taxation response 'excellent news' - Andrew Warren, EuroACE Senior Advisor

Sir,

Concerning 'Brown and Sarkozy team up on 'green' tax', earlier this year you kindly ran a letter from me, making the point that it is quite absurd that Europe's sales tax remains systematically biased against the environment, enabling energy consumption to be so frequently taxed more lightly than energy conservation. So it is excellent news that boht the new French and the new UK head of government want this distortion removed.

It is now more than nine years since June 1998, when the Council of Ministers formally invited the Commission to "consider introducing proposals for differentiation in tax levels for energy saving products". I am glad that the tax directorate is at last preparing to respond to this quite specific request.

Andrew Warren, Senior Advisor