Letizia Moratti· PPE

Nuanced

The carbon tax weighs up to 20% of bills

Omissions

• The '20%' figure refers to CO2 related taxes as a share of total energy tax revenue, not as a share of household energy bills specifically. The claim conflates the share within taxation with the share within final consumer bills.
• The data period is 2023, which is the most recent available from Eurostat before the February 2026 session date.
• The claim does not distinguish between households and businesses - Eurostat data shows businesses contributed 53% of energy tax revenues while households accounted for 44% in 2023.
• The figure 'up to 20%' is an EU average - individual member states may have significantly different proportions.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat - Climate-related taxes Statistics ExplainedCO2 related taxes accounted for almost 20% of energy taxes in the EU in 2023, up from 6% in 2017. Carbon tax revenue grew from €15 billion to €51 billion between 2017 and 2023.
• PrimaryEurostat - Carbon taxes revenue tripled between 2017 and 2023 (official news release)Revenue from carbon dioxide related taxes in the EU increased from €15 billion in 2017 to €51 billion in 2023. In 2023, businesses contributed 53% of energy tax revenues while households accounted for 44%.