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There are dozens of different narratives in circulation about climate change, arguing in favour of climate action and green policies, as well as arguing against them. But which ones actually cut through to the public?
Climate Barometer tracker data shows that narratives that are pro-climate action are being heard and are generally agreed with by the public. Even a striking statistic about emissions inequality (the richest 1% emit twice as much as the poorest 50% combined) has been heard of and agreed with by 48% of the public.
In contrast, statements sometimes made in opposition to net zero and climate action (‘we can either fix the climate or fix the economy’) and key anti-net zero attack lines (‘net zero policies will make us colder and poorer’), or misinformation about 15 minute neighbourhoods are mostly unheard of.
Areas where misinformation is more prevalent include attitudes about electric vehicles (being ‘no more environmentally-friendly than petrol or diesel cars’), and the role of population growth in global carbon emissions.
MPs generally indicate higher exposure to media narratives about climate change, and more Conservative MPs in particular seem to agree with certain statements about the reliability of renewables ‘when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine’, and on the sustainability of electric vehicles.
Conservative MPs are more likely than the general population to read newspapers like the Telegraph, where many of the anti-net zero statements tested in the Climate Barometer tracker can regularly be found.
Following months of sweltering heatwaves, record-breaking wildfires and five regions in drought, this week it was provisionally confirmed that 2025 was the UK’s hottest summer on record.
While this new record was made ‘70 times’ more likely by climate change, the overwhelming sentiment is that the country is not prepared for more summers like this. The UK’s official climate advisors, practitioners who work on the frontline of the heatwave response, and the British public all agree that the UK isn’t ready for more extreme weather,worsening heat, and compounding risks like water scarcity and wildfires.
At the same time, there are important perception gaps to address. Despite the alarming statistics about heat-related deaths in the UK, many people were looking forward to the first heatwaves this summer. Lots think that heatwaves will only become a problem for the UK in the future. And many believe that hot weather poses more of a risk to other people, not themselves.
In this context there are important conversations now happening about how to grapple with the growing climate risks in the UK, including the sudden lurch towards air conditioning (despite its potential to make heat risks worse).
For more on the key issues surrounding heat communication, check out our recent opinion piece in Climate Home News.
A climate of silence in the UK?
New analysis from Climate Barometer reveals more than half of Britons say they ‘rarely’ or ‘never’ share their opinions on climate change in everyday conversations.