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Tories plan business carbon tax | |
(about 3 hours later) | |
The Conservatives are planning a carbon tax on British businesses, shadow chancellor George Osborne has said. | |
This would raise more money than the existing climate change levy, he told the CBI conference, and would be "offset" by tax cuts elsewhere. | |
"We want to shift the tax burden away from income and investment and onto pollution," Mr Osborne said. | |
Money currently raised by the levy subsidises energy-saving investments and national insurance reductions. | |
'Opposite direction' | |
Mr Osborne said: "The chancellor decided to increase National Insurance and at the same time reduce the proportion of taxes collected by green taxes. | |
"We want to go in the opposite direction." | |
The Conservatives' tax proposal is called the "carbon levy". | |
Mr Osborne told business leaders: "I would like your thoughts and input into the exact design of the carbon levy - but let me stress, any additional revenues that it raises will be offset by reductions in other business taxes. That is a guarantee." | |
The climate change levy was introduced in April 2001 to cut emissions from business. | The climate change levy was introduced in April 2001 to cut emissions from business. |
There's the assumption that we'll do the clever stuff, we'll move up the value chain, and leave the Chinese and Indians to do cheap things George Osborne Shadow chancellor | |
Companies can often recoup the money through the energy they save and can also avoid payments by using renewable - but not nuclear - energy. | |
BBC economics editor Evan Davis said the climate change levy raised less than £1bn per year, and that the carbon levy was the first substantive proposal by the Conservatives for a new environmental tax. | |
There were no plans by the Tories to tax households directly on their carbon emissions, he added. | |
'Abandoned issues' | |
The Conservatives have said they want green taxes to form a higher proportion of all taxes, although they do not want the overall tax take to rise. | The Conservatives have said they want green taxes to form a higher proportion of all taxes, although they do not want the overall tax take to rise. |
Mr Osborne told the CBI conference in London that his party was not becoming "anti-business". | |
"For too long my party abandoned issues like the environment, flexible working, and social responsibility to our opponents on the left. | |
"So I make absolutely no apology that we have been talking about the new business agenda." | |
Mr Osborne also warned against misunderstanding globalisation, saying: "I think there are quite a lot of lazy assumptions out there that we need to confront. | |
"There's the assumption that we'll do the clever stuff, we'll move up the value chain, and leave the Chinese and Indians to do cheap things. | |
"Let me tell you - no one has told them that." |