Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy asked me about the use of carbon tax estimates. He is correct to say that I did not answer due to the variety of other issues with which I had to deal. Apologies for that.

The most recent projection provided by my Department for the period 2021 to 2030 is €9.2 billion in additional carbon tax revenues. Projections are point-in-time exercises and the reviews are reviewed periodically to take account of factors such as changes in the macroeconomic environment, policy decisions by Government and other factors. My Department's carbon tax receipts projection for the period 2021 to 2030, in a declining carbon tax base, reflects a change in behaviour in response to the tax among other things. This estimate uses a base of 21.5 metric tonnes of CO2, which reflects the estimated carbon tax base in 2019 informed by carbon tax receipts for that year.

This carbon tax base projections for the period 2020 to 2030 reflect a trajectory of official Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, emissions projections. Specifically, this adjustment reflects the EPA's non-ETS with additional measures and projections for annual equivalent emissions of CO2. The particular scenarios used to inform my Department's projections as it identifies non-ETS emissions are reflective of emissions subject to the carbon tax while ETS submissions are not subject to the carbon tax. It also reflects a with-additional measures scenario, which includes the Government's commitment to a €100 per tonne carbon tax by 2030.