From Gareth Ackland, London, UK
I commend your article on the European Parliamentary elections for flagging up the fear of higher environmental taxes, which could only make life disproportionately harder for poorer people (25 May, p 23). It may fuel populism and encourage the idea that environmentalists are part of an elite.
The carbon fee and dividend scheme championed by climate scientist James Hansen accounts for this, and, indeed, inverts it: all levies raised from extraction or import are divided equally between citizens. The dividend for someone on a low income would easily outweigh the price increases to their weekly shop. A high earner who overconsumes would be penalised and hopefully given incentive to adapt. Hard for a populist to argue against a scheme that makes those who are profiting less from society richer.
