Recent reports had suggested that the tax may be brought in to help cut greenhouse gas emissions.
However, the EC’s Dublin Director Martin Territt has stepped in to defuse any panic about the situation, saying the commission has not proposed the move.
“To suggest otherwise is to deliberately mislead the public. Let me repeat, this story is unfounded and untrue,” he said.
“The European Commission has no powers to propose taxes of this nature to member states. Only member-state governments have competence to develop their own national strategies on reducing emissions – not Brussels.”
While the move would have possibly reduced emissions in Ireland and across Europe, it was suggested that cattle farmers may simply move their herds to Latin America – exacerbating the situation by increasing emissions from shipping.