Aontú TD for Mayo Paul Lawless has said that carbon taxes should be revoked in the midst of rapidly rising fuel costs.
Speaking today, Deputy Lawless said: “Right across the country we’re seeing savagely high prices for petrol and diesel. What few realise is that up to two thirds of what we pay at the pumps is going to the government is taxes. In the past decade the government has taken in more than €35 Billion in tax on fuel. A significant portion of this was carbon tax. Aontú was the only party which voted against the Climate Action Bill in the Dáil because we knew it would lead to carbon tax. It’s not just commuters who are paying the price, every customer and nearly every business in Mayo relies on the transportation of goods. If the cost of petrol and diesel is allowed to continue to increase, then the prices of groceries and products will soon take a jump too”.
Deputy Lawless continued: “There is no doubt that some oil companies are price gouging, because many of these increases happened immediately. But the government is price gouging too. Inflation in the cost of fuel suits the government, because it means they take in more in tax. In each of the past ten years the amount of money taken in through fuel tax has increased. The government could reduce the cost of petrol by two thirds if they stopped taxing it”.
“I am calling on the Minister for Finance Simon Harris to scrap the carbon tax on fuel for the duration of this fuel crisis. I have been against carbon tax since day one because it is simply serving to punish people for driving, despite the fact that in rural areas they have no other means of transport. The approach of the government has been one of all stick and no carrot. Consumers in rural Mayo cannot wait while the government thinks about what to do – we need an immediate reduction in the tax rates. The Dáil is on holidays this week, which is shameful – it should be recalled to deal with this inflation crisis”, concluded Lawless.
