Are the plans of the EU Commission for the taxation of fuels a contribution to a better co-ordination of climate and fiscal policy?

The EU Commission has submitted a draft for an energy-tax directive that foresees a fundamental reform of energy taxation as an incentive for a reduction of fuel consumption. In the opinion of Peter Ramsauer, Federal Minister for Transport, Construction and Urban Planning, progress in a further harmonisation of EU energy taxation is welcome from a traffic and environmental-policy viewpoint. However, there are good reasons for questioning the timing and the content of the Commission's proposal. The presentation of an energy tax proposal appears somewhat rushed since it concentrates too strongly on an isolated area and is not imbedded in an overall concept. Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, CAR-Center Automotive Research and professor for business administration and the automobile industry at the University of Duisburg-Essen, regards the plans of the EU Commission as a good beginning but only a partial solution. What is missing is a well-thought-through overall system and not merely an energy tax solution. A CO2 tax, energy taxes and user fees must stand in a proper relationship to each other. It should be the task of the EU Commission to introduce proposals for an overall transport system that can be then adapted by the member states in accordance with their fiscal needs. In the opinion of Werner Rothengatter, University of Karlsruhe, the propositions of the Commission point in the right direction both in terms of climate as well as taxation policy. However, major improvements are still needed in order to avoid counterproductive effects. For Hans-Jochen Luhmann, Wuppertal Institute for the Climate, Environment and Energy, the CO2 element should be singled out and should be the prominent element of a taxation on energy sources in the EU.