Workshop on fair climate policies highlights carbon pricing and solutions

The event brought together around 70 participants, including academics, national experts and policy makers working on Social Climate Plans.

Main takeaways

• Carbon pricing affects households differently across EU countries and income groups, shaped by factors like heating methods, mobility patterns and local climate.
• Public acceptance of climate policies depends on transparency, trust and clear communication. The clear earmarking of revenues, public consultations and communication of tangible benefits are essential to build trust.
• Regressive impacts in the buildings sector can be reduced through a combination of short-term income support and long-term decarbonisation investments, alongside policies that lower the electricity-to-fossil-fuel price ratio to make clean heating solutions more attractive.

The workshop covered new evidence on the household impacts of the Emissions Trading System for buildings and road transport (ETS2) and mitigation strategies in those sectors to support vulnerable households.

Participants discussed the impact of measures such as direct income support, renovation and heat pump subsidies, social leasing schemes for electric vehicles and transport vouchers. The role of public communication and stakeholder engagement was emphasised as vital in strengthening public acceptance of climate policies.

The Vice-Chair of the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies (EGE) shared recommendations on addressing inequities in the just green transition. The discussion also explored how these recommendations align with the recent Commission's Intergenerational Fairness Strategy.