subsidies

Few economic collapses in modern history have been as dramatic, prolonged, and devastating as Venezuela’s. Once the wealthiest country in Latin America, endowed with the world’s largest proven oil reserves,…

The widely circulated news that the EU is backtracking on the ban on selling cars with internal combustion engines in 2035 is greatly exaggerated. Rather than a U-turn, it’s more…

In 1825,  the first public railway line from Stockton and Darlington in the UK was opened to traffic. For more than half a century, there was a vigorous development of…

Rail and public transports are usually deemed essential features for a well-functioning mobility system. How could we get around in our cities without buses, trams and metros? Wouldn’t there be…

In August 2022, US President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which promises massive investment by the US government in US-built green infrastructure and industry. The IRA will provide $400bn-$1trn over…

The world is warming up and now “boiling”, according to the new definition by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Yet, instead of tackling the “climate crisis”, governments are subsidising fossil fuels.…

Since the Agreement on Agriculture of the World Trade Organization (WTO) came into force in 1995, global trade patterns have changed, but a number of distortions have remained. For example,…

Government’s mortgage interest subsidy, besides creating a lot of social costs, benefits almost solely the rich, yet it’s precisely the rich who boldly claim to want to scrap the programme. What’s going on?

By Nicolas Lecaussin

The French government recently announced the creation of 100 000 green jobs over the next three years. The goal is of course to stem rising unemployment. However, the tangible results of creating green jobs in several countries, as well as the real costs of these jobs, should have given food for thought before taking action.

In France, an IREF study (“Les mythes des emplois verts”) published in early 2011 showed that the term is ambiguous and calculated the real cost of a green job, based on official reports. The definition of green jobs is rather vague, although there is an official handbook on green growth (“Focus on 50 professions for green growth”). Among these, most already exist (gardeners, sewermen, cleaners, geologists …). Others seem to come straight out of a vaudeville: nature discovery guide, eco-museum guide, eco-interpreter, nature guide…

Our colleagues at the TPA have campaigned successfully against union subsidies. This means that the number of civil servants working for the unions at the taxpayers’ expense will now be…