German Chancellor Calls for Europe Wide Carbon Pricing on Transport and Industry

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, top candidate of the Christian Democratic Union Party (CDU) for the upcoming general elections, gestures as she speaks during an election rally in Regensburg, Germany, September 18, 2017. REUTERS/Michael Dalder

Guest essay by Eric Worrall

As Germany and Europe reels from the economic impact of Covid-19, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has just added to the reasons for not investing in Europe, by demanding manufacturing and transport be hammered with new carbon pricing measures.

Merkel says world needs to do more to combat climate change

BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that global efforts to combat climate change were insufficient, and that she would accelerate the fight to combat it in coming years.

At a news conference, she said the European Union needed to adjust the climate goals it has set for 2030, and that she wanted a carbon pricing mechanism for the industry and transport sectors.

The European Commission will next month propose a new 2030 climate target for a 50% or 55% emissions reduction against 1990 levels, compared with an existing goal for a 40%.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-merkel-climate-idUSKBN25O1CU

The German economy shrank 10% this year thanks to Covid-19 and the lockdowns. Germany is a leading exporter of manufactured goods, so much of this economic contraction is due to difficulties faced by the German manufacturing sector.