Pressmeddelande -
New book from Timbro: "The green jobs hypothesis does not even work in theory"
The
competitiveness of enterprise can be increased by tightening
environmental standards. That is the claim of the European Commission,
which promises 500 000 new green jobs by the year 2020. But in his book Are Green Jobs Promising the Moon?, released by Timbro today, Christian Sandström,
Ph.D. and researcher at the Ratio Institute, reaches a different
conclusion when investigating whether the EU has support for its claims.
– Across the globe, and especially in Europe, politicians have launched
major investment programs and new regulations based on the theory that
there is no contradiction between tightened environmental regulations
and economic growth. But the research does not provide sufficient
support for such a policy. That is worrying, not least because Europe is
struggling with its economic growth, says author Christian Sandström.
In his book, Sandström shows that, historically, it has been difficult
to create environmental and energy regulations which produce the desired
effect. Instead, regulations resulted in unintended consequences in the
form of runaway costs for states and in some cases bubbles, where
profit-maximizing companies quickly exploited the regulatory systems.
– Some of the countries that introduced active green growth strategies
have reduced their subsidies in recent years. This could be seen as a
sign that the implemented policies did not produce the intended results
in the form of increased growth and new jobs. It is high time we begin
to discuss matters of innovation in a more balanced way, says Christian
Sandström.
These dollar amounts are at stake
According to HSBC (2009), green government investments amounted to:
| Approximately 12% (112.3 billion dollars) of the total stimulus in the USA (2008– ). |
| Approximately 13% (13.8 billion dollars) of the total stimulus in Germany (2009–2010). |
| Approximately 38% (221.3 billion dollars) of the total stimulus in China (2009–2010). |
| Approximately 7% (2.1 billion dollars) of the total stimulus in Great Britain (2009–2012). |
| Approximately 21% (7.1 billion dollars) of the total stimulus in France (2009–2010). |
| Approximately 59% (22.8 billion dollars) of the EU’s centrally decided stimulus (2009–2010). |
To read an excerpt from the book, click here.
To download a press photo of the author, click here.
Contact and appearance inquiries
Christian Sandström, Ph.D, christian.sandstrom@ratio.se, telephone +46 73 705 01 37, www.disruptiveinnovation.se.
Lydiah Wålsten, Project Manager, lydiah.walsten@timbro.se, telephone +46 70 646 56 88, www.timbro.se
Ämnen
- Ekonomi, finans
Timbros uppdrag är att utveckla idéer och långsiktigt bilda opinion för marknadsekonomi, fri företagsamhet, individuell frihet och ett öppet samhälle. Vi tror på allas rätt att forma sitt eget liv, i sin egen takt och att ta ansvar för detsamma. Allra viktigast för arbetet i en tankesmedja är att engagera intressanta personer, eftersom det är människor som utvecklar, formulerar och bär idéer.
