Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

For that reason, I am setting out a range of options in the budget booklet for making such a move. My Department will carry out a public consultation process on these proposals before coming back to Government. Any changes will have effect from a target date of 1 January 2008.

At the same time, my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government will consult on his proposals for a complementary rebalancing of annual motor taxation. This would provide a further incentive through the motor tax system for the motoring public to drive cleaner cars and would impose some additional cost in respect of cars with higher carbon dioxide emission levels. This would apply to vehicles registered on or after 1 January 2008. Underpinning both of these initiatives will be a new mandatory labelling system for cars based on CO2 emission levels.

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