A think tank called Onward is generally seen as right-wing and Tory leaning. In that case, its finding on green issues are interesting. In polling it has released today it says:
And it added:
Before noting:
The Tory climate sceptics need to rethink.
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Well it’s a start but the 2050 net zero target is surely too complacent by decades.
Apart from being far too slow to address the ever quickening rate of climate change the target of 2050 has always meant that any jobs benefit derived from the greening of the economy will be greatly reduced. We would instead be yet again importing technology and green fuel from countries that had moved more quickly than us.
Tragically, this appears to be exactly the Tory policy. Business as usual, with a tiny number of people in the city of London making billions from the import of equipment and resources while the rest of the country continues its inexorable slide towards the kind of inequality and poverty usually associated with an asset-stripped colonial possession.
Encouraging surveys but will the present extreme right of the Conservatives take any notice? I doubt not, as they are fully committed to “market solutions” and don’t give a damn about rising energy prices for ordinary people.
The optimum “market solution” is renewables – which for the most part do not need subsidies & are far far cheaper than fossil or nukes. The problem the Tory-s face is that whilst oil & gas and the construction sector (nukes) provide contributions/bungs/bribes to the Tory-s party, renewables for the most part don’t. Thus why would the tory-s party/gov want to support renewables since there is no pecuniary advantage to them doing so (arguments such as “for the good of the country” do not & never have cut any ice with tory-s).
As for “ordinary people” – they are, you, me most, viewed as serfs/peasants by the tory-s, always have been, always will be.
My worry with these surveys is do the respondents know how any of changes needed affect them?
Less car usage?
More public transport?
Do they realise the ramifications?
If we asked ‘Do you support reducing emissions if it means driving at on only 40mmph on the motor way / using more public transport than the car ‘ what would stats be then?
I still see a lot of new, high end 4×4 ‘s on the road where I live.
PSR,
Electric vehicles powered by renewable electricity don’t create emissions. When the combustion engines are gone there will still be good reasons to increase the use of public transport but those reasons won’t be emissions related.
A net zero outcome need not imply a whole lot of doing without, just different technology.
It is good to see this issue is cutting through, but not fast enough. It is indeed the (or one of the) most important issues of the day. What will conditions be like on this planet in 50 or 100 years time? There is nowhere else to go.
“Net zero” is marketing moonshine until we have technologies that can work at scale to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. Planting a few trees to offset emissions is not going to cut it.
So how do we capture 3.7 kg of CO2 for every kg of carbon that we emit? Until we can answer that question, there is no “net” at all. All we can do is reduce emissions as fast as we can.
Andrew,
You raise a good point but ‘net zero’ in and of itself isn’t about removing the existing CO2 from the atmosphere. Its all about reducing existing emissions, faster.
Correction: its all about reducing emissions faster by accelerating the take up of clean and green technology.
My late Uncle (RAF Retd) Tory & Brexiteer didnt agree with me over many things BUT did see the point of energy self sufficiency
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvZaleYmqIE
“The Tory climate sceptics need to rethink”… & quoting from the video – are investing in our own extinction. Bravo. Idiots.