Contradiction

Danno

I have to laugh at the foolishness of some aspects in the Budget.

A carbon tax on road fuel - to persuade people to drive less or use public transport...

...and then a Car Scrappage Scheme - to er, encourage people to buy a car!

Only in Ireland I guess. :rolleyes:

BroomBurner

They also included an encouragement to buy a more environmentally friendly car, with additional financial incentives to do so.

Hardly that much of a contradiction.

gandalf

BroomBurner wrote: »

They also included an encouragement to buy a more environmentally friendly car, with additional financial incentives to do so.

Hardly that much of a contradiction.

+1

Although unless people have the cash I would question any incentive to get people into further debt.

RonMexico

Only in Ireland would someone consider that a contradiction.

namloc1980

It's a scheme to get older (more polluting) cars off the road and to encourage people to buy low emissions cars in the A and B bands. To me it's like the two policies work hand in hand!! Get more efficient cars on the road / put a carbon tax on fuel.

AlekSmart

Hardly that much of a contradiction.

Perhaps not at first glance it`s not,but when one looks at the Governments collusion in reducing the Bus Atha Cliath and Bus Eireann fleets by some 300 units and the commensurate reduction in Service Levels then it seems pretty contra to me.

It`s probably a lot easier for a native Fianna Fail supporter to rationalize,but the Toll situation on Noel Dempsey`s M3 Motorway illustrates the Contradiction even better.

Guarantee your Toll Operator a minimum usage figure (and keep it SECRET) then set about maximizing that usage by reducing public transport options and offering shiny beads as an inducement to buy a car.....Thats pretty contradictory to me,expecially when your a member of a Government wedded to the notion of being a Green,Clean administration....:rolleyes:

amacachi

No matter how polluting a car is it's less polluting than the production of a new car.

Danno

If they REALLY cared about polution then they should set a time - well in the future - for introducing an outright ban on the combustion engine.*

But then again, taxes cure a recession :rolleyes: This carbon tax will only go to inflate the prices of all produce as still the same amount of diesel gets burnt delivering bread from bakeries to shop shelves.

* say annouce it for the year 2020, anyone with classic cars etc... would need a permit to drive them.

P. Breathnach

amacachi wrote: »

No matter how polluting a car is it's less polluting than the production of a new car.

I'm very much in tune with that thinking. If you want to do what is best for the environment, then the best way to go about it is to use a car as long as possible, and keep it well serviced. And use it as little as reasonably possible.

namloc1980

Danno wrote: »

If they REALLY cared about polution then they should set a time - well in the future - for introducing an outright ban on the combustion engine.*

But then again, taxes cure a recession :rolleyes: This carbon tax will only go to inflate the prices of all produce as still the same amount of diesel gets burnt delivering bread from bakeries to shop shelves.

* say annouce it for the year 2020, anyone with classic cars etc... would need a permit to drive them.

WHAT?? :eek:

You think the Irish government should announce a ban on the combustion engine?? Is this a joke?

Cheap Thrills!

As mentioned on another thread as the driver of a 10 year old banger myself this scrappage scheme is useless to me.

I can't afford a new car and I certainly am not going to borrow to get one. As for reducing emissions, ha, nice idea but get real, people don't have the luxury of making green 'choices' :rolleyes: these days. To be honest never did even during the so called boom people like me struggled with the 'basics' such as food/mortgage/utilities. I work full time but subsist rather than live. Money is a struggle.

I didn't borrow to buy a status motor like so many during the boom and hence I am still driving the banger I bought secondhand 7 years ago.

If the Government was serious about encouraging end users to be more green they would incentivise people like me to be able to scrap/trade against a decent secondhand. As it is even that is out of my reach.

More Goverment lip service and nonsense.

gandalf

In reality if they were serious about a carbon tax that made people pay by their usage they would abolish car tax and increase the duty on petrol more. Then people would pay more if they used the car more.

However a carbon tax should be balanced with a proper investment in Public Transport to give the majority in the country the choice of public transport and in those areas where people don't have the choice a tax credit to balance that fact they have to drive.

gcgirl

namloc1980 wrote: »

WHAT?? :eek:

You think the Irish government should announce a ban on the combustion engine?? Is this a joke?

I'm stuck between Hollywood and Laragh where do i stick me plug??

gandalf

gcgirl wrote: »

I'm stuck between Hollywood and Laragh where do i stick me plug??

You really should be careful making statements like that on boards !!!

thebman

A new car will cost more in its creation pollution wise than using the banger until it stops working.

Of course its not new for the green party to create grants for green businesses that just get swallowed into the price. One has to question their real motives in giving tax payers money to green businesses. At times they are encouraging more pollution so what is their actual goal or do they not do their homework? I don't believe they are as squeaky clean as they want people to believe.

Can't afford a new car. Damned if I'm going to go 20-30,000 in debt to help out the car industry :rolleyes: My car is economical anyway for its age. I'd love to buy a new car at some point in my life but it makes no sense economically and a recession on the magnitude we face is not the time to make silly purchases of that size.

gcgirl

gandalf wrote: »

You really should be careful making statements like that on boards !!!

Sorry i was talking bout an Electric Car right the odd time i have to go over to the other side of the county usually over the Wicklow Gap if i happen to run out of Electricity where do i stick my plug in to or will i be left to the lions tigers and bears to eat me up there!