THE introduction of carbon taxes could boost exchequer funds by €500 million a year alongside the setting up of a climate change commission, according to a new economic report.

AS water becomes scarcer in Ireland, the clamour to charge domestic users for this most essential, though taken for granted, of substances is certain to rise.

According to the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), a recent study for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) showed that carbon taxes need not hurt the poor, because the revenues could be more than enough to compensate them.