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The number of people who agree ‘there is no such thing as climate change’ remains marginal: only 2% agreed with this statement in the latest opinion tracker from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
It’s important – in a period of political instability and the fracturing of the climate consensus – to remind ourselves that despite the turbulence, outright denial of climate change is almost non-existent.
And most people (49% vs 22%) recognise that the energy transition will be positive for the country in the long-term.
But (backing up a signal that is getting louder by the day) the DESNZ data shows that concerns about the costs of green policies are growing, with a record high of people who think the economic consequences of the country’s transition to Net Zero will be negative in the short-term.
Labour has promised to reduce energy bills by £300 a year, and (long-term) the policies being introduced will likely deliver this. But short-term, the financial insecurities that people face (which have little to do with green policies) are being weaponised by opponents of climate action.
Whilst this happens, making the best case for what is currently on the table is equally critical: this requires connecting the ‘how’ and the ‘why’ of net zero alongside telling people’s stories to demonstrate that the transition is both achievable and effective. Read more about the takeaways from Climate Barometer & Public First’s recent net zero message testing research here.
Climate Barometer tracker polling from October 2025 shows that the public primarily hold ‘businesses that pollute the most’, ‘the fossil fuel industry’, and ‘energy companies’ responsible for covering the majority of costs of transitioning to net zero.
This is consistent for almost every voter group, with the exception of Reform UK supporters, who are reluctant to single out the fossil fuel industry, and are more likely to say ‘nothing would make net zero fair (22%), and Green party supporters, who are more likely to hold the wealthiest 1% of households responsible.
Notably, the public do not hold airline companies, the motor vehicle industry, or households who pollute the most – to the same degree of responsibility.
Commentary & Analysis
29th November 2025
The Autumn Budget is out. Here’s a preview of what the tracker reveals about what people blame for the cost of energy bills, taxing the super rich, and who pays for net zero.
Our latest public & MP opinion data
Despite intensifying campaigns against net zero by opponents of green policies, our tracker shows support for the 2050 net zero target holding steady.