Make Povolenky Great Again

It is often being promised nowadays that many things will be great again. Unfortunately, politicians’ pledges are almost never turned into reality. Is it the same case with European climate policies? Or will, thanks to the reform, emissions allowances be great again? In May 2019, the Government of the Czech Republic approved the new amendment to the Act No. 383/2012 Coll., on emissions trading which implements the revised European directive 2003/87/EC. The revision was adopted in early 2018 and sets the rules for the next decade. The main purpose of these changes in climate change law is to make the European Emissions Trading System more flexible, increase the pace of emissions cuts and prevent the emissions allowances price drops so that they could finally fulfill their purpose – substantial reduction of emissions in a cost-effective way. This paper aims to present the main premises of emissions trading systems and examine the current and future design of the EU ETS.