sure at least 20 % of all energy use is coming from carbon free sources . Currently Sweden is leading the way , with 54 %, whilst the UK is ranked 24th out of 28 , with just 8.2 % of energy coming from renewable sources . So the UK is going to have to more than double their use of renewables in the next four years in order to meet current targets , a seemingly impossible task given the political situation that we currently find ourselves in .
One of the most widely known ( and widely criticised ) policy ideas design to help transition the economy towards renewable energy , is a Carbon Tax . The term “ Carbon Tax ” is divisive , controversial , and tends to draw the same criticisms and support year-onyear without any true progress being made on the subject ( at least not in the United Kingdom ). In Australia , a Carbon Tax was implemented in 2012 and repealed again within two years due to it ’ s severe unpopularity and in Canada , Justin Trudeau has put the wheels in motion to apply a Carbon Tax and is already facing backlash . The underlying issue is that it leads to inflation across the board and whilst that would only be temporary as the economy would eventually adjust , people are not willing ( or often able ) to foot the bill . Industry groups complain that a Carbon
Tax stifles innovation and growth , whilst others complain it is a tax grab or simply don ’ t believe it ’ s necessary . At a time of political and economic instability for Britain , climate change is being pushed further and further down the agenda . However , Ted Halstead , founder and CEO of the Climate Leadership Council , has proposed a novel and innovative way to implement a Carbon Tax that avoids all the usual trappings of the issue , whilst putting money in the pockets of the general public and cutting government spending ; he calls it a Carbon Dividend .
This Carbon Dividend is based on four core principles :
• Implement a gradually rising Carbon Tax
• Give those proceeds back to the taxpayer in the form of a monthly dividend
• Rollback environmental regulations to shrink government
• A climate domino effect based on border carbon adjustments
Let ’ s break down exactly what that means . A gradually rising Carbon Tax is likely to start at £ 8 per tonne ( looking at the Canadian model ) and rise year on year .
This encourages businesses to transition rapidly towards a
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