Govt official: EP climate tax contrary to Hungarian government aims

The climate tax proposal adopted by the European Parliament on Wednesday is not in line with the Hungarian government’s aims, the state secretary responsible for energy and climate policy has said.

At its Wednesday session, the EP adopted several sections of the EU’s climate protection package, including a reform of its Emissions Trading Scheme, which would be expanded to emissions from traffic and residential buildings by 2029.

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Attila Steiner told MTI on Thursday that while the proposal would extend emissions trade to households, the Hungarian government stood by the view that such burdens should be shouldered by large corporations, he said. Many member states concur with that stance, especially since the war in Ukraine has been driving up inflation and energy prices, he said.

Regarding the European Green Deal, which aims to make the EU carbon neutral by 2050, Steiner said the importance of supply security has grown since the war started. Supply security, affordability and the green transition should all be considered in the process, he said.