{"id":426384,"date":"2026-02-15T18:14:24","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T17:14:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=426384"},"modified":"2026-02-15T18:14:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T17:14:26","slug":"kings-college-london-uk-climate-action-support-plummeting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=426384","title":{"rendered":"Kings College London: UK Climate Action Support Plummeting"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
declining-urgency-enduring-support-public-attitudes-to-net-zero-and-climate-policy.pdf<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent study from King’s College London (KCL) highlights a notable decline in the UK’s public sense of urgency around climate action and net zero targets, though overall support for the 2050 net zero goal remains relatively solid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The research, conducted by the Policy Institute at King’s College London, in collaboration with Ipsos and the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations, is based on a representative survey of over 4,000 UK adults in August 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Bobby Duffy, Director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London, described the results as showing a “striking decline in the public’s sense of urgency around climate action”, with support dropping across every tracked policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Bobby Duffy, Director of the Policy Institute at KCL, noted: “This research reveals a striking decline in the public’s sense of urgency around climate action. The proportion who thinks we need to reach net zero sooner than 2050 has nearly halved since 2021, and support has fallen for every climate policy we’ve tracked over this period.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Watts Up With That?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Essay by<\/strong> Eric Worrall<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But a majority still say Net Zero should be achieved by 2050 or earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

UK Urgency on Net Zero, Climate Support Plummets<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

King\u2019s College London
Public support for UK reaching net zero by 2050 is waning<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the research<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

declining-urgency-enduring-support-public-attitudes-to-net-zero-and-climate-policy (1.04MB pdf)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The share of the UK public who say the country needs to reduce carbon emissions to net zero sooner than 2050 has nearly halved since 2021, according to a major new study<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n

29% of the public now say the UK should achieve net zero before the government\u2019s 2050 target \u2013 down from 54% in 2021, when this question was last asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proportion who feel the UK either doesn\u2019t need to reach net zero by 2050 or shouldn\u2019t have a net zero target at all has risen from 9% to 26% over the same period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But despite this declining sense of urgency, a significant majority (64%) still believe the government\u2019s target for net zero should be at least 2050, if not earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026Read more: https:\/\/www.miragenews.com\/uk-urgency-on-net-zero-climate-support-plummets-1618630\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

From the Kings College London Report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Declining urgency, enduring support<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Public attitudes to net zero and climate policy<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: bobby.duffy@kcl.ac.uk | gideon.skinner@ipsos.com
February 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy <\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. The urgency of achieving net zero<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the aim of getting to net zero still commands wide public support, the proportion of people viewing it as an urgent priority has fallen sharply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The belief that the UK needs to achieve net zero sooner than 2050 is no longer the majority view among young and middle-aged people, but older people are now most sceptical<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026Read more: https:\/\/www.kcl.ac.uk\/policy-institute\/assets\/declining-urgency-enduring-support-public-attitudes-to-net-zero-and-climate-policy.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The entire study<\/a> is well worth a read, its only 38 pages long, and the information is well presented, with lots of informative graphs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report contains some interesting hi-lights.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Support among green party voters has dropped substantially for key net zero policies like low traffic neighbourhoods, taxes on flying, EV subsidies and high carbon food taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Older people are far more skeptical of pretty much every green policy dimension. If it was up to older people, Net Zero would be over. But there is still solid support amongst young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A substantial number of Reform voters (26%) support Net zero by 2050, surprising given Farage\u2019s open climate skepticism. Perhaps Farage is appealing to them on other issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study contains some interesting comparisons between US attitudes and British attitudes towards Net Zero. Unsurprisingly the USA is far more skeptical than Britain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study authors didn\u2019t provide a list of questions in their report, though the survey was conducted independently by Ipsos<\/a>. I\u2019d have preferred more detail in the study details section on page 38, but it looks like they made an effort to produce unbiased results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can I say? This survey is both exciting and disappointing. It\u2019s great to see the solid wall of BBC climate brainwashing is starting to crack under the strain of Miliband\u2019s disastrous Net Zero policies, though I feel sorry for people caught up in the consequences of Net Zero through no fault of their own. It\u2019s sad that a majority of people still appear to support Net Zero, even after years of hardship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Change is coming \u2013 but Britain is out of time.<\/strong> Over the last 26 years industrial output has halved as a share of GDP. Britain is no longer a nation which manufactures its own needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lack of domestic manufacturing capacity and failure to develop domestic energy resources such as the trillion cubic feet of frackable gas sitting under Lancashire<\/a>, with even more gas recently discovered under Lincolnshire<\/a>, fully exposes Britain to global supply and price shocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
“Hygiene Poverty”: The Brutal Reality of Life in Net Zero Britain<\/a><\/blockquote>