Earth Protect Blog

Sweden urged other European nations on Friday to follow its lead in linking new taxes to greenhouse gas emissions as governments seek additional sources of income in the wake of the financial crisis.

Denmark, Finland and Slovenia already have taxes on household carbon emissions that can add costs to heating and electricity use. France is planning to plug part of its swelling budget gap with a new carbon tax that could bring in an extra 1.5 billion euro next year.

Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg, whose country currently holds the EU presidency, said Sweden's carbon tax "has been a very good source of revenue" since it was introduced in the start of the 1990s.

It's a tax "where you can see a good purpose" because it encourages energy efficiency and renewable power, he told reporters after talks with European Union finance ministers in Gothenburg.

The EU's top taxation official, Laszlo Kovacs, said he is ready to propose an EU-wide energy tax on fuel used for transportation and for household heating. That would add charges to fuel with higher carbon dioxide emissions such as coal.

"It would certainly give renewable energies some tax and price advantage," Kovacs told The Associated Press.