Two-thirds of people in the UK want the government to bring in more urgent measures to tackle the climate crisis
Eco-activism is continuing to go mainstream (thank mother earth) – a new poll has found that, rather than just school strikers and airport-capturing protesters, a large majority of British people believe we need more urgent political action against climate change.
The survey of 2,000 people by The Climate Coalition highlights the ever-rising concern for the planet, and how climate change is becoming a pressing issue among the UK public. 69 per cent of people want to see strong environmental laws implemented by MP’s to tackle the issue. While ex Prime Minister Theresa May (long may she rest) pledged to reach zero carbon emissions by 2050 – a move that would make the UK the first large economy to achieve this – two-thirds of people believe that Britain should cut its carbon emissions to zero faster, as estimates say we will reach the point of no return by 2035.
58 per cent of the survey participants said they now talk about climate change and the environment more than they did five years ago, while 77 per cent agreed the issues surrounding the climate crisis were more mainstream and visible than ever before.
In a statement, Clara Goldsmith, campaigns director at the Climate Coalition, said: “The government’s decision to set a net zero target in law was clearly a response to calls for action from voters which have grown louder and louder in recent months. Now we need our politicians to put policies in place to deliver on that target, as well as measures to clean up the air we breathe and the plastic in our seas. The findings in this poll make clear the scale of support for action in the form of statistics.”
In Dazed’s recent A Future World campaign, which investigates what our future is going to look like with the ensuing threat of climate crisis, we explored the mental health impact of climate change and activism, speaking to campaigners and psychologists about the affect the visibility of climate emergency has on people.
These new stats follow the recent Extinction Rebellion protests that took over multiple London locations at the end of April, as well as the ongoing school strikes on Fridays. A mass lobby of parliament has also been planned, with more than 14,000 people from across the UK who have signed up to travel to Westminster next week to meet their local MP and demand urgent action to tackle climate change and bring in appropriate, swift safety measures for the planet.