UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – YouGov poll shows 68% of Britons want cheaper household energy, while only 21% prioritize reducing carbon emissions as a top concern.
As reported by The Telegraph, a recent poll finds the public considers cheaper energy bills more important than the net zero agenda.
What did the YouGov survey show about Britons’ energy priorities?
A YouGov survey showed the majority of voters consider lowering household costs more important than achieving net zero targets.
The poll finds doubts among voters about Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s net zero strategy, which includes a 2050 carbon neutrality pledge first introduced by the former Tory government.
The survey found that 60% of Britons support net zero, but over two-thirds say lower household costs are a higher priority.
A majority of UK adults (68%) prioritise lower household costs over cutting carbon emissions, which only 21% chose as a priority.
The poll revealed that among net zero supporters, 56% favoured affordable energy, while 33% prioritised environmental concerns.
According to YouGov, only 2% of adults believe the Government will achieve its net zero target, while support for net zero was strongest among Green voters at last year’s election, at 86%.
A majority of voters, 76% of Labour supporters and 79% of Liberal Democrat backers, were in favour of the climate initiative.
The survey shows just 23% of Reform UK voters back net zero, compared with two-thirds (67%) who oppose it.
The YouGov poll shows nearly half of Tory voters (48%) backed the net zero target, despite Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch’s sceptical stance, with 37% opposed.
She pledged to scrap the Climate Change Act, which sets five-year carbon budgets and enshrines the 2050 net zero target.
The 2050 net zero pledge was made law in 2019 under former prime minister Theresa May, now a Conservative peer.
Following her tenure, former prime minister Boris Johnson pursued ambitious net-zero goals and oversaw the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.
He promoted the benefits of renewable energy and called on other nations to commit to legally binding carbon cuts.
Speaking on the Smart Society Show podcast, Mr Johnson admitted he acted ‘far too fast’ on climate change but insisted his commitment remained strong.
What did Ed Miliband say about Labour’s fight for net zero and green jobs?
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said Labour is battling a “global network of rightwing billionaires” seeking to undermine net zero for their own vested interests.
He warned that the Tories and Reform UK are “importing a net zero culture war” and urged faster green policies to win public support.
Mr Miliband said,
“Genuinely, I relish this fight on clean energy and net zero. Because that is what politics is about.”
He stated,
“Reform is now part of a powerful network across the world who want to take away rights for workers, who want to reverse clean energy. Elon Musk, he is a poster child in a bad way for this movement, and we have to take that on.”
The energy secretary added,
“The consensus hasn’t broken down because the British people have changed, the consensus has broken down, because the Tories and Reform have thought, ‘Let’s import the culture war from the US.’”
Mr Miliband continued,
“They want to say that the problems of the country can be put down to migration, diversity, net zero. The truth is the reason why people’s living standards are stuck, why growth has been so low, and public services are on their knees, is … trickle-down economics from the 80s, which left us with huge inequality and austerity in the 20s.”
What are the UK’s net-zero target?
The UK has a legally binding commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This means the country aims to balance emissions with removal efforts to ensure no net emissions by that year.
The strategy includes phasing out petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035, tightening building energy efficiency standards, and expanding renewable energy.
