Fueling opposition? Yellow vests, urban elites, and fuel taxation

Abstract

ABSTRACT The yellow vest movement in France was triggered by a fuel tax increase. The increase was designed to reduce petrol consumption and hence emissions. However, the costs of this policy were unequally distributed among citizens. The yellow vests illustrate that abstract support for public action against climate change is not enough to secure support for concrete policies. These policies run the risk of being opposed by citizens when their costs are unevenly spread across society. Through a survey experiment on Norwegian citizens, we analyse how different policy characteristics generate ‘support gaps’ within society. Particularly, we contrast two stylized profiles: ‘urban élites’ (high-educated urbanites) and ‘yellow vests’ (low-educated ruralites). We find that opposition rises with the individual cost of the policy but in a non-linear way. Environmental earmarking and invoking personal responsibility widen the gap between yellow vests, urban élites, and the rest of society. Redistribution to low-income households and invoking international commitments help to bridge such gaps. We argue that, instead of focusing on aggregate levels of support, both policymakers and academics should rather pay attention to the polarizing effects of certain policy attributes.