For subscribers
The climate won't wait. We need a carbon tax now
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Large changes might well be achievable with a surprisingly subtle carbon tax.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Tim Harford
Follow topic:
(FINANCIAL TIMES) - A friend recently wrote to me agonising over an ethical question. He was pondering a long-haul trip to see his family but was all too aware that the flight would have a huge carbon footprint. Could the journey possibly be justified?
I suggested that my friend find out what the carbon footprint was (a tonne of CO2, it turns out) and then imagine a hypothetical carbon tax. Would he still be willing to travel if he had to pay the tax? If not, the trip wasn't worth it.
