They all want to look greener

All the political parties now seem to be committed to introducing further environmental taxes to try and deal with some of the important issues that we face over the coming years.

Environmental taxes are not new. In recent years, there has been a trend towards taxing "bads" instead of "goods" and several taxes have been introduced to try and reduce environmental impact through financial measures.

The landfill tax, climate change levy, congestion charges and packaging waste regulations are examples of such taxes, with more to come.

The theory behind all of these taxes is that they modify behaviour towards being more "environmentally friendly" and therefore reducing the tax burden.

Have they worked in practice?

This is a far more difficult question to answer.

Following the introduction of the landfill tax nearly ten years ago, anecdotal evidence suggested a large increase in the amount of flytipping throughout the country.

This was an unfortunate side-effect of what appeared to be a laudable attempt to reduce the amount of waste being sent to the dump.

These types of problems give environmental taxation a bad name as many people then assume that it doesn't work effectively.

However, the landfill tax has been a qualified success, since it has helped increase the amount of waste sent for recycling, one of its original objectives.

The Environment Secretary, David Miliband, has admitted that new environmental taxes may specifically be introduced to tackle climate change.

He has yet to be drawn on what these measures are likely to include, but it is likely that whatever his focus, he is likely to get a rough ride.

Among the expected proposals are a 'pay as you drive' tax (doesn't that already exist through the fuel levy?) and taxes on aviation.

There seems to be some consensus between the parties on taxing aviation fuel, but it remains to be seen whether the plans include taxing domestic flights only or Europe-wide flights.

Taxing flights for further afield, although perhaps more beneficial globally, is less likely since this could affect the global economic standing of the UK.

Ultimately, environmental taxation cannot be seen as a money-making venture.

If the theory behind successful implementation is to be realised in practical terms, less money should be made from environmental taxation year on year as improvements are made to reduce the taxation burden on individuals and businesses from their polluting behaviour.

This needs to be made clear in the sales pitch to reduce the backlash that will undoubtedly come.