The tax on internal combustion cars is definitely a thing of the past. Last week, the European Commission announced the approval of the 5th revision of the Polish National Reconstruction Plan. Its most important element is the abandonment of the reform involving the introduction of additional fees for owners of such vehicles.
Read also: Taxes on internal combustion cars in Poland. There is an EU decision on the KPO milestone
“It should be assessed unequivocally positively”
The fees were supposed to have a pro-environmental and pro-climate effect, motivating people to give up the most air-polluting and emission-intensive cars, but the government has been trying to abolish them for a long time. They cited social reasons and the fact that the levies would primarily hit less wealthy owners of older cars.
The issue was also the subject of a political fight – the current team talked about the “Morawiecki tax” because it was included in the Polish KPO by the previous government. Instead of the deleted form, the revision approved the establishment of the Government System Heating Fund for 2026-2030 with a budget of approximately PLN 3 billion and an increase in Poland's participation in the EU IRIS 2 satellite program.
The Commission's decision, preceded by the government's efforts, pleases Leszek Wiwala, president of the Polish Organization of Petroleum Industry and Trade (POPiHN).
— The withdrawal from additional taxation of combustion cars as part of the revision of the Polish KPO should be assessed unequivocally positively – he tells Business Insider. – The penalizing component in the form of new public levies always hits the poorest entities the hardest: consumers and SMEs – he adds, explaining that, in turn, the beneficiaries of subsidies for electric cars are wealthier households and companies.
“Poland will not punish its citizens”
According to Wiwala, the “polluter pays” concept underlying the abandoned reform – characteristic of the entire EU climate policy – may strengthen transport exclusion. — If someone cannot afford to pay the eco-tax on a combustion car, they certainly do not have the funds to buy a new electric car. – says.
—It is good that Poland will not punish its citizens for meeting the need for mobility. This is a rare case of the actual implementation of the slogan “energy transformation will be fair or it will not happen at all”, which is very popular on discussion panels and press conferences, but it is difficult to find it in the regulations – says Leszek Wiwała.
He also considers other EU regulations to be potentially harmful and unrealistic – the ETS2 system, which, although postponed by a year, is still to cover CO2 emissions from buildings and transport, and the latest version of the RES directive (the so-called RED III directive), which imposes, among others, requirement to use biofuels.
Read also: These groups will pay the most. How to mitigate the ETS2 pricing revolution
“Our lungs will pay for the lack of courage of politicians”
The departure from the requirement to tax combustion cars is clearly criticized by Aleksander Śniegocki, president of the Reform Institute. As he says, as a result of this decision, “particular interest won over the social interest.”
—The imposition of taxes on internal combustion cars was supposed to be primarily about air quality, and therefore public health. In the long run, our lungs will pay for today's lack of courage among politicians, and replacing the car fleet with low or zero emission ones will take much longer. – he states. According to the expert, by departing from previous findings, the government and the European Commission are sending a signal that health is not an important topic.
— Issues that we all should care about fall victim to great discussions about the Green Deal or the costs of transformation. It is very disappointing that we do not try to eliminate the pollution that affects each of us. It's not even about this specific solution, but about the impact on further public debate and designed policies, explains Śniegocki.
“The regulations could have been adapted”
But what about the burdens that would be borne by ordinary people and the political risks associated with an unpopular decision, especially a year before the elections? The head of the Reform Institute replies that the government would have freedom in designing taxation regulations.
— The regulations could have been adapted to Polish specifics. The government would have flexibility in meeting the milestone and freedom to spread the tax incentives. No one expects all drivers to immediately switch to electric or hybrid cars. The most harmful vehicles would simply be gradually eliminated, says Śniegocki. He adds that we could get used to the changes over time, as is the case with the tightening of road traffic regulations.
— Taxation of combustion vehicles in accordance with the “polluter pays” principle occurs in many European countries, so it would really be about introducing a broader standard in Poland – he adds.
Solutions similar to the withdrawn idea, penalizing or burdening phenomena unfavorable to the environment, health or climate, are often opposed to a policy of incentives. Aleksander Śniegocki, however, claims that the “carrot” itself is not enough.
— Of course, incentives and tools such as social leasing, which will enable less wealthy households to have access to low- and zero-emission vehicles and which can be financed, for example, from the Social Climate Fund, are necessary. Nevertheless, we also need a stick – burdens on what is most polluting and harmful to health. Imagine rejecting this logic completely – we would then have to eliminate all health and environmental regulations, which would leave us living in a much less livable country. A good example is the implementation of anti-smog resolutions, thanks to which the number of the most emitting fumes is constantly decreasing. By only offering subsidies for new furnaces or heat pumps, we would not achieve this effect, he sums up.
