We use cookies where necessary to allow us to understand how people interact with our website and content, so that we can continue to improve our service.
We only ever receive anonymous information, and cannot track you across other websites.
View our privacy policy
Conservative voters are marginally more likely to be opposed than to support – but there is broad support for lowering urban speed limits from 30 to 20mph across the survey sample as a whole.
Although lower speed limits are typically advocated for on road-safety grounds, they also tend to improve air quality and so are typically also part of the package of measures that comprised clean air zones.
A new report from the think tank Onward Power to the People argues that proposals for local renewable energy projects are much more likely to receive support if they provide community benefits to the local area.
Of the rural voters surveyed for the report, 43% of rural voters would already support local renewable energy projects without any community benefit. But an additional 37% would support development if they came with community benefits.
ACT Climate Labs have released a guide to rebutting the argument that there’s ‘no point’ in the UK reducing its emissions, when countries like China or India account for a higher proportion of global CO2.
Although this argument is prevalent among opponents of climate action, encouragingly Climate Barometer tracker data shows that only a minority of the public and MPs endorse it. Much larger numbers agree that the UK should be one of the most ambitious countries in the world on climate change regardless of what other countries are doing.
In its June 2023 progress report to parliament, the Climate Change Committee outlined how the UK government could regain a sense of leadership on climate change:
Stay firm on existing commitments and move to delivery. The Government has made a number of strong commitments, these must be restated and moved as swiftly as possible towards delivery.
Retake a clear leadership role internationally. The UK will need to regain its international climate leadership
Empower and inform households and communities to make low-carbon choices. Despite some positive steps to provide households with advice on reducing energy use in the last year, a coherent public engagement strategy on climate action is long overdue.
Polling of SNP voters by the campaign group Stop Cambo found that 70% agree that the UK should ‘get off oil and gas as quickly as possible’ by ramping up efforts to improve energy efficiency and developing lots more renewable energy.
In an example of the ambiguity that phrases like ‘as quickly as possible’ can sometimes mask, though, whilst 45% supported a ban on new exploration for oil and gas, almost the same number (39%) did not. Overwhelming support for greater investment in renewables among the public does not directly correlate with increasing opposition to oil and gas extraction.
There is, though, widespread support for ensuring communities are ready and able to benefit from the transition away from oil and gas (62%) and that workers are given more assistance in the transition to green jobs (86%).
A paper by researchers in the USA has tested narratives about climate change and migration. They found that:
…reading about climate-induced immigration (vs. immigration not linked to climate change) did not change participants’ climate concerns or climate policy support. Instead, reading about climate-induced immigration resulted in more negative attitudes toward immigrants.
The research matches similar findings across the UK and Europe showing that attitudes towards migration can’t be used as a ‘tool’ to boost climate concern (and many argue on ethical grounds that the link shouldn’t be ‘weaponised’ in this way). At best they have no impact on climate policy support, and at worst, they can backfire by increasing anti-immigration sentiment.
This YouGov tracker shows that support for government spending to develop solar power is consistently high (around 70-80%), and opposition is low (between 8-11%).
In May 2023, the government’s new Public Order Act came into force, significantly increasing the power of the police to respond to protests, and to introduce new criminal offences. The government made explicit reference to activist groups such as Just Stop Oil and Insulate Britain as justifications for these measures.
The Act received widespread criticism from activist groups and other NGOs, as well as the UN Human Rights Chief. In particular, the Act introduced the following acts as criminal offences:
In addition, the Act has lowered the threshold to define “disruptive” protesting, and extended the use of stop and search powers for protests.
There is public support for punishing activists who cause disruption. For instance, 78% of Britons surveyed felt some form of punishment was appropriate for someone who has participated in a non-violent but disruptive protest, such as blocking a road (YouGov/Uni Bristol, July 2023). However, there was stronger support for fines as punishment (37%), rather than imprisonment (29%).
The image of Britain “split down the middle” on issues of local renewable development projects is not, according to research by More in Common, an accurate depiction of public opinion.
In focus groups with communities in two regions where green energy developments have been presented as contentious and controversial in local media, they report that:
“Most Brits are balancers, tired of the loudest voices dominating debates, and eager for us just to get on with it quietly, less talk, less fuss and more action.”
While renewable energy projects are often positioned as controversial, and do attract some loud minority opposition, these conversations suggested people were often not aware of planned developments, and were typically broadly supportive when offered the chance to reflect on them.
OFFSHORE is an independent documentary that explores what the coming energy transition means for workers and communities around the UK North Sea.
The film looks at how communities and regions have been impacted by past industrial decline, the risks workers face in an increasingly precarious industry and how they can organise for the future.
Banks and GP surgeries are the most desired amenities that are currently not available within 15 minutes walk for Britons, according to YouGov polling in March 2023.
Whilst the concept of 15 minute neighbourhoods has become the focus of online conspiracy theories, and protests have taken place in some cities around the country, it is not yet clear how widespread this opposition is among the general public.
This survey would suggest that opposition to 15 minute neighbourhoods – when it is explained to survey respondents what the they mean – is limited.
Platform and Friends of the Earth Scotland have come together with a small group of offshore workers to build demands for a just energy transition. These workers developed 10 demands covering training and skills, pay, job creation, investment and public ownership.
They then surveyed over 1000 offshore workers, and over 90% agreed with these demands. Trade unions and other climate groups have also backed this vision.
This report details that work, the demands and how they can be put into practice.
A new research paper provides insights and guidance on heat risk communication and behaviour change. The authors write:
“There are a range of behaviours that people might take to avoid the negative impacts of heatwaves and very hot weather – these can involve personal protective actions during heat events (such as using a fan, adapting your clothing), preparative measures (e.g. adapting your household by installing blinds or shutters), as well as other actions like seeking out more information, temporarily moving location, or engaging in political action.
Research shows that a very broad range of factors can influence people’s engagement with heat risks. People’s perceptions and behaviours about heat can be influenced by contextual factors (like their location, their physical environment, demographics, socio-cultural influences), as well as personal level factors (like their knowledge and awareness of risks, past experiences of heat, or pre-existing health conditions).
Communication about heat risks can do much to draw on these influences, including tailoring warning messages to resonate with personal factors, drawing on the role of trusted messengers and clearly attributing risks to climate change.”
Government ministers have been criticised for their handling of emissions relating to meat consumption, after a key Government policy document appeared to circumnavigate the issue. The land use strategy for England – did not include reduction in area used for animal agriculture, despite being designed to ensure the country reaches its net zero and biodiversity targets, while helping farmers adapt to climate change and continue producing high-quality, affordable food. A senior Defra source commented “it’s not up to us to tell people what to eat”.
This is at odds with the government-commissioned National Food Strategy (NFS) which recommended that to achieve a sustainable future, the UK must reduce the proportion of farming land committed to animal agriculture (which stood at 85% at the time).
Henry Dimbleby, who led the NFS review, remarked that no government would tell the public to eat less meat as the message was “politically toxic”.
In November 2023, food systems campaign group ‘Feedback’ applied to take the Government to Court for a judicial review over its ‘failure’ to tackle food and farming emissions in the Food Strategy. Feedback’s application was rejected, a move which the environmental group said revealed fatal flaws in the Climate Change Act.
