The public strongly supports Boris Johnson’s bid to curb climate change – but they are not prepared to pay more than £5 extra a week in tax to fund his trillion-pound green energy plans.
They are concerned that the proposals may not be well-thought out and could lead to power cuts.
These were the key findings of a Daily Mail Poll on the eveof the Cop26 summit in Glasgow, which aims at reversing global heating.
An extra £260 a year represents just over a tenth of the estimated annual £2,500 cost per voter for reaching the Government’s 2050 zero carbon target
The survey by JL Partners illustrates the scale of Mr Johnson’s task as he hosts Cop26 with the aim of winning international support for tough action to make the world carbon neutral.
The good news is that voters backed his 2050 zero-carbon emissions target for Britain. This includes banning gas boilers and banning new petrol or diesel cars in the next years.
And they urge him to press ahead with them even if ‘big polluters’ such as China, whose president Xi Jinping is boycotting Cop26, refuse to act.
The bad news is that the poll reveals the huge political gamble the Prime Minister is making.
The public strongly supports Boris Johnson’s bid to curb climate change – but they are not prepared to pay more than £5 extra a week in tax to fund his trillion-pound green energy plans
It reveals deep public skepticism over whether his measures will work – and Conservative supporters are the biggest doubters.
A total of 36 per cent of all voters worry his ‘green energy’ policies will lead to ‘the lights going out’. However, 31% of voters aren’t concerned about this.
People aren’t prepared to see their living standards fall to meet the eye-watering costs of his plans, which some estimate at a trillion pounds.
Six in ten are unwilling to spend an extra penny on domestic fuel to pay for ‘green energy’.
But two out of three (66 per cent) say they are ready to pay a maximum £5 rise in their weekly tax bill – £260 a year – to reach Mr Johnson’s 2050 zero carbon target.
However, only one in 25 (4 per cent) are prepared to pay £25 more per week in tax (£1,300 per year) for this purpose.
An extra £260 a year represents just over a tenth of the estimated annual £2,500 cost per voter for reaching the Government’s 2050 zero carbon target.
Mr Johnson’s wife, environmental campaigner Carrie, is credited by voters for influencing her husband’s views on climate change.
43% of respondents said she was a positive influence, while 33% disagree.
The conflict between the desire to curb climate change and alarm about the cost and effectiveness of doing so is reflected in the response to the Government’s plan to ban gas boilers by 2035 and replace them with heat pumps.
Nearly one-third (48%) of respondents support the proposal, while 25 percent do not. But reports that heat pumps can cost up to £20,000 and don’t work have clearly had an impact.
Only in 20 say they will definitely take up the Government’s offer of a £5,000 grant towards a heat pump; a further 14 per cent say they will probably do so.
But two in three (67 per cent) say they either definitely or probably won’t take up the offer.
Voters urge Mr Johnson to press ahead with emissions targets even if ‘big polluters’ such as China, whose president Xi Jinping is boycotting Cop26, refuse to act
A majority – 51 per cent – support plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, although Conservative voters are less keen, with 44 per cent in favour and 37 per cent against.
Only 3 percent of voters own an electric vehicle, and 39 percent say they will buy one.
53% of respondents blame China for the current climate change crisis. America comes in second with 14%, followed closely by India and the UK at 4 percent each.
However, 68% of respondents believe that Johnson should take bold action to solve the problem, even though nations like China are not doing anything.
Barely one in four think Cop26 will be a success – four in ten say it will fail. Asked what they will do personally to tackle climate change the most popular is ‘put on an extra jumper’ to keep warm in winter, ‘fewer foreign holidays’ is well down the list and ‘buy a heat pump’ is bottom.
James Johnson, of JL Partners, said: ‘On the one hand, Boris Johnson has an easier task ahead of him than countries that are more polarised on the environment – like the US, Canada and Australia.
‘An overwhelming number of Britons – nearly 90 per cent – say that they believe climate change is happening, and want to see action to address it.
Mr Johnson’s wife, environmental campaigner Carrie, is credited by voters for influencing her husband’s views on climate change
‘But there is a gap between the idea of tackling climate change – and the reality of the costs of it.
‘Though there is enthusiasm for climate change action in principle, and people feel it will help the economy in the long-run, they are not willing to part with their cash.’
He added: ‘The public is not confident that Cop26 will change their minds and the failure of attendance by president Xi and Vladimir Putin has clearly harmed the summit in its eyes.
“But there is still hope for the government. Voters believe we should still lead by example and support a binding climate agreement, even without China and other large polluters.
‘It is that patriotic case for net zero – the “show the rest of the world how it is done” spirit – that may yet make the summit a success in the public’s eyes.’
JL Partners interviewed 1,043 adults online Tuesday.