§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will discuss with the European Commission the relationship in fiscal terms of implementation of the carbon dioxide energy tax as proposed by the European Commission White Paper on employment to the yield of VAT on household fuel; and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir John CopeA Commission proposal for a tax on carbon/energy has been under discussion for some time, and was considered most recently at the ECOFIN Council in December 1993. The Government have made it clear that the United Kingdom does not need a carbon/energy tax to fulfil our obligation on CO2 emissions under the United Nations convention on climate change, and could not agree to an EC-wide tax as proposed by the Commission.