Department considered raising carbon tax by €10 in budget

The Department of Finance suggested carbon tax could be raised by €10 in last year’s budget to “frontload” the increase and make it more effective in encouraging people to be climate-friendly.

A submission prepared for Paschal Donohoe, the finance minister, explained how carbon tax was designed to change behaviour and that the “more effective” way to do this would be with a large increase to begin with.