Six heads of state and government and the leaders of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund today called on companies and countries to follow up on their ambitions for Paris by putting a price on carbon to drive investment for a cleaner, greener future.
In a remarkable show of unity on the first day of the climate talks in Paris, heads of state and government from a number of countries called on the world to start pricing carbon pollution as a key to combatting climate change and transforming the global economy. The heads of state and government included the leaders of France, Chile, Ethiopia, Germany, Mexico and Canada.
"The goal is to gradually set a sufficiently high carbon price around the world to encourage better behaviour," said H.E. President François Hollande of France. "In France, the Energy Transition Act has already made provision for a substantial increase in the price of carbon, to €22 per metric tonne next year and a projected €100 by 2030. In Europe, we will also improve our carbon market while ensuring that the most compliant countries remain competitive. Very quickly, a company consuming less CO2 should gain a decisive competitive advantage."
