Tax

• But if you’re one of the distrustful majority, that may not be such a bad thing.
• In a 2021 survey, just 24.5% of respondents across OECD, countries said they trust political parties.
• National polls repeatedly show similar results, particularly in the wake of scandals involving politicians misbehaving.
• Self-evidently, trustworthy leaders are preferable – but that doesn’t mean trusting them unconditionally once they’re in power.

Trust isn’t a ‘thing’

• But there’s no optimal survey result, and no one should expect complete trust.
• People talk metaphorically of “building” trust, but trust isn’t a “thing” that’s literally broken and rebuilt.
• Political trust is about an underlying “deal” that keeps a society together and functioning.
• People disagree about whom to trust, and judgment will partly depend on which politicians promote the policies people prefer.

Government is a work in progress

• But leadership and government are themselves problems about which people have debated for millennia, with still no universally agreed solution in sight.
• It’s worth noting, for example, that in China, most people tell pollsters that they trust their government.
• There may be disagreements about how best to govern, but all states practice, by necessity, some form of government.

• As there’s no handy administrative formula for political trust, such personal and political self-examination has to persist.
• Telling surveyors that you don’t trust politicians is a gentle and valid form of political resistance.

Grant Duncan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

• But economists are hardly infallible experts on the carbon tax and other fiscal measures implemented by governments.
• While the carbon tax increase kicked in, the Alberta fuel tax was hiked by 13 cents the same day.
• In other words, the carbon tax has been a blessing for Smith as she deflects attention away from her own government’s role in raising gas prices.

Double standards

• For instance, some homeowners have blamed the carbon tax for higher electricity bills in Alberta, ignoring the fact that the carbon tax does not apply to the electricity sector.
• Double standards abound on the carbon tax.
• While protesters chant “Axe the tax,” they ignore that fossil fuel subsidies cost them more than the carbon tax.

Textbook economics backs carbon tax

• As an economics instructor, a key lesson is that the carbon tax is the least costly method to address carbon emissions.
• In my pedagogical paper on climate change, I refer to McGill University economist Chris Ragan, who states that the carbon tax is more efficient than regulation.
• But the carbon tax incentivizes investment in new technologies to limit the tax payment.

The limits of textbook economics

• The way textbook economics approaches climate change through externalities suggests it’s simply a minor aberration.
• Energy and raw materials are ignored, which means that biophysical or ecological limits are disregarded in the pursuit of growth.
• Keen argues that mainstream economics assumes 90 per cent of GDP will be unaffected by climate change.
• In short, he argues, mainstream economics has been complicit in the existential crisis of climate change.

Radical solutions

• But it may be too little too late, necessitating radical solutions beyond the carbon tax.
• In this regard, Keen argues that carbon pricing is not enough, calling for carbon rationing.
• This happens by going beyond textbook economics and technical jargon by highlighting the ecological and biophysical limits to growth.

I am not affiliated with any organization. Though, I have in the past done research assistance work for the Parkland Institute.

• PNE AG is therefore in the upper range of the guidance for Group EBITDA of 30 to 40 million.
• "With the 'Scale up' strategy, we have initiated the further development of PNE AG into a Clean Energy Solutions Provider in 2017.
• We have all achieved or, in some cases, significantly exceeded the ambitious targets we set ourselves for 2023.
• In Italy and especially in Romania, the PNE Group achieved operational success on international markets in 2023.

• Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment AG (SBO), listed on the ATX of the Vienna Stock Exchange, continued its growth in 2023 and recorded excellent sales and earnings development.
• The SBO Group's sales rose by 16.9% to an all-time high of MEUR 585.9 (2022: MEUR 501.2), driven by the outstanding performance of the AMS division with 32.2% growth.
• The order backlog per year-end remained at a high level at MEUR 225.4 (2022: MEUR 265.0).
• We have once again demonstrated our operational strength, achieved record sales, improved our operating result and generated a high operating cash flow.