No Carbon Tax in France before EU Adoption

French President Nicolas Sarkozy confirmed Tuesday that the carbon tax wouldn't take effect in France before being applied in Europe, repeating the endless delay of the levy amid domestic and international pressure.

"The carbon tax won't be applied in France unless it is a tax upon European borders," Sarkozy told a group of agriculture representatives, during a visit to Essonne, a French department near Paris.

Sarkozy noted it's "not fair" if only imposing the constraints upon French people, local media reported.

On the same day, the European Commission expressed its skepticism about the carbon tax on EU borders, which France has been promoting for.

"A carbon tax on (EU) borders presents a number of considerable drawbacks, which should be remedied," the commission said in a working document.

So far, Denmark, Finland and Sweden have already taxed the carbon emission, but several other European countries, including Germany and Britain, held opposition against the tax.

EU commission argued that different ways of taxing carbon emissions across EU member states is "problematic" as it may harm the "efficiency and competitiveness effects in a single market."

French government announced in March to draw back from the efforts to implement the tax after the defeat in regional election as the carbon tax has been long criticized by domestic industries and households.