A Green New Deal
The “Green New Deal” calls for a major shake-up of taxation and
financial systems, as well as a massive investment in energy
conservation and renewable energy. The report, released by the New Economics Foundation,
claims that greenhouse gas emissions must be stabilized within the next
100 months lest we pass the “potential point of no return.”
Inspired by FDR’s programs that followed the Great Depression in the
U.S., the Green New Deal promised to address a “triple crunch” of
challenges that include climate change, high oil prices and credit
crisis. It calls for spending more than 50 billion pounds per year
turning every U.K. building into self-generating power stations. A
“carbon army” of workers needed to expedite the environmental
reconstruction plan must be trained.
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Among the suggestions are:
- The price of fossil fuels must factor in environmental costs in order
to provide an economic incentive to pay for the transformation,
including a windfall tax on profits of oil and gas profits.
- Other financial innovations and incentives must also be developed
reduce energy demand and finance the an energy efficient infrastructure.
- Inspired by the financial programs implemented during the Great
Depression in the U.S. during the 1930s. For instance, the group calls
for re-regulation of the financial systems to enable low interest rates
projects aimed at building the new transportation and energy
infrastructure.