"Green tax" bill too high, says report

3:33pm Friday 29th August 2008

Comments (5)   Have your say »

RESIDENTS in Wycombe may be paying £76 million too much in so called "green taxes" according to a report by the Taxpayers Alliance.

However, Government officials have slammed the report, stating that its findings are "simply wrong".

The report compares the amount of carbon dioxide generated by residents of the UK with the amount paid in taxes to offset the damage.

Author Matthew Sinclair claims that taxpayers are being left out of pocket, and Wycombe District is one of the areas which is hardest hit.

Mr Sinclair said: "I think what the Government is wanting to do is raise revenue. What they're using as a cover is climate change."

The report claims that in 2007 Wycombe residents released one and a half million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the air.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, this would cause £11 million worth of damage to the environment in the long term.

However, the report states that Wycombe residents paid £87.4 million in taxes on fuel, energy and waste, £76 million more than the damage caused.

The Treasury has responded by saying the way in which the report was compiled is flawed.

Treasury spokesman Matt Patterson issued a statement saying "The estimate of green taxes is simply wrong as it includes taxes used to fund core public services, rather than simply offsetting the cost of CO2.

"For example, while fuel duty recognises the environmental costs of driving, it also pays for important public services, including new roads and public transport and efforts to tackle child poverty."

The vast majority of money paid to the Government as part of the "green taxes" comes from fuel duty - a tax on petrol, diesel and other fuels.

Mr Patterson said that since 1999 fuel duty has increased at less than the rate of inflation, making it 17 per cent cheaper than 10 years ago.