Understanding the resistance to carbon taxes: Drivers and barriers among the general public and fuel-tax protesters

Jens Ewald, Thomas Sterner and Erik Sterner

Resource and Energy Economics, 2022, vol. 70, issue C

Abstract: Carbon taxes are generally well accepted in countries with significant experience thereof but there is still public resistance to raising them. We study attitudes toward carbon taxation and other environmental policy instruments in Sweden. We survey a national sample of the population as well as members of a large political movement that protests fuel taxes. Our results show that the motivations in both groups are alike: educational level, rural versus urban domicile, political orientation, and especially trust in government correlate with opinions on carbon taxes; household income does not appear to matter. Lack of trust in government and lack of belief in the Pigouvian mechanism appear as especially important motivations for protesters’ opposition. We find support for revenue refunding, but greater support, in both groups, for earmarking for climate use.

Keywords: Political acceptability; Climate change; Carbon tax; Fairness; Protest (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q51 Q54 Q58 Q59 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (22)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:resene:v:70:y:2022:i:c:s0928765522000483

DOI: 10.1016/j.reseneeco.2022.101331

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