New Omnisis polling for Byline Times suggests the government is completely out of step with voters on a number of crucial issues.
Just 17 per cent of voters think PM Rishi Sunak is right to take helicopters and private jets to travel domestically, following his trip to Scotland last week. Two-thirds, by contrast, are opposed. Even Conservative voters say it’s wrong, by 43 per cent against to 38 per cent in favour.
Voters also believe the new oil and gas licences for energy firms is incompatible with lowering the UK’s carbon emissions and reaching Net Zero.
Less than a quarter (24 per cent) back the government on this, compared to 46 per cent who say the licences are incompatible with the UK’s Net Zero goals.
And almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of voters don’t think this government will achieve its aims in reaching Net Zero by 2050. That includes 59 per cent of Tories and 66 per cent of Labour voters – a rare point of cross-party consensus. Just 25 per cent of Conservative voters and 14 per cent of voters as a whole think the government will hit its targets.
Asked to rank how much they trust the government to look after the environment and tackle climate change, only 4 per cent of voters completely trust Sunak’s administration. A whopping 39 per cent gives his government the lowest possible score of 1.
And though the PM has taken aim at Sadiq Khan over his expansion of the Ultra Low Emissions Zone in London, a plurality of voters (42 per crnt) across the country believe that the most polluting vehicles should face a daily charge to tackle air pollution (37 per cent disagree).
Support for charges on polluting vehicles actually rises to 48 per cent among Londoners, many of whom are now used to such policies.
Alethea Warrington, senior campaigner at Possible, said: “It’s incredibly irresponsible for the Prime Minister to be taking private flights across the UK while the world is sweltering in record breaking heat.
“It’s no surprise that the public can see this is wrong. In poll after poll, they call for strong climate action, and this literally flies in the face of the climate leadership we want to see.
“There’s no excuse for our Prime Minister to be taking such filthy flights. It’s time to tax private jets properly, and ban them by the end of the decade.”
Over 1,400 adults in GB were polled online by Omnisis on 3rd August 2023, with results weighted to be representative of the public.
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