British ambassador to China William Ehrman said in Nanchang on Monday Britain remains against the proposal by some countries of charging carbon tariffs toward imported products.

"It is an excuse for protectionism. We always oppose taxation on any excuse of protectionism," said Ehrman.

Britain advocates free trade and opposes to any kind of protectionism, which is the reason it attracts investment from China, he said.

"I think in the future, we could use taxation differently, giving lower tax for green goods. But we oppose to taxation on present imports," the ambassador added.

The concept of "carbon tariffs", initially proposed by former French President Jacques Chirac, has been echoed by the United States, Canada and the European Union. They proposed raising duties from countries that are not cutting greenhouse gases according to the Kyoto Protocol.

Chin's Ministry of Commerce said last week that the "carbon tariffs" proposal violates World Trade Organization rules and the spirit of Kyoto Protocol.

Imposing carbon tariffs on foreign products will allow developed countries to conduct trade protection in the name of protecting the environment, the ministry said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 7, 2009)