UK: Massive public support for building back greener

New statistics unveiled by the UK government show the vast majority of people support the rapid growth of renewable energy projects throughout the UK.

The latest Public Attitudes Tracker, published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, shows 80% of people support the use of renewable energy, while only 3% oppose it.

Offshore wind remains hugely popular at 77%, while onshore wind also enjoys overwhelming backing at 73%. The public support for wave and tidal energy stands at even higher 79%, according to the poll.

The poll also reveals that 82% of people are concerned about climate change. This percentage has been increasing gradually over the course of this year, up from 78% in the survey published in May and 81% in August.

Similarly, there has been an increase in awareness of the government’s net zero emissions target: up from 52% in the survey published in May, to 63% in August, to 66% of the public in this most recent poll.

Melanie Onn, RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive, said: “The sky-high level of public support in this latest poll chimes with the Prime Minister’s announcement that he wants every UK home to be powered by offshore wind by 2030. The industry is on course to achieve that with the mega-projects we’re installing in UK waters during this decade.

“We can build back better after Covid by putting onshore and offshore wind at the heart of our modern energy system, alongside innovative technologies like renewable hydrogen, floating wind and marine power. Our world-class clean-tech industries are bringing billions in private investment to the UK at the very time when we need to create new jobs most”.