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A week is a long period of time in politics, but three years is an eternity. Australia has seen unprecedented floods and megafires since the 2019 elections. Meanwhile, news of extreme weather such as India and Pakistan’s horrific heatwaves has poured in. International pressure is increasing to address climate change.
Perhaps this is why Australian views on climate have become more neutral. A new poll that I and my colleagues conducted among 1,100 Australians revealed that nearly 90% of them believe climate change is a problem. That’s an average across the political spectrum, from the Greens to One Nation.
Not only that, but almost 80% of us are optimistic, believing it’s possible for Australia to halve its emissions by 2030.
In a Similar pollThe Australian people were more divided than the work we did before the 2019 election. Only 48% of right-leaning voters, those who intend to vote for the Liberals Nationals One Nation or United Australia parties, thought government policies to address climate change and environmental damage were important, compared to 84% left-leaning votes (those who intend to vote for Greens or ALP).
In our 2022 poll, views converged. Similar proportions of voters on both the left and right now rate government action on climate change and environmental damage highly.
What does that mean for this Saturday’s federal election? I can’t say with any certainty, given other issues are front of mind for many people – including the cost of living, house prices and rising interest rates. The findings do not change the belief that Australians are divided on climate action.
Darren England/AAP
What did we discover?
Our findings show that concern for the environment is almost universal. 94% of voters believe that environmental damage is a problem, and 89% believe that climate change is a threat.
And as for readiness to change or help, that’s high across the spectrum too. 84% of respondents would choose an electric vehicle over an internal combustion engine if it was cheaper, 95% say they recycle regularly, and 95% believe they should help the environment.
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While economic factors are still important, 95% of those who conserve energy are concerned about their bills. 82% are concerned about climate change.
These results are based on polling conducted between May 10-12 among approximately 1,100 Australian voters. PureProfile gathered a representative sample. I asked the same questions about environment and climate change as my colleagues, and added questions that were included in a poll we conducted just before the 2019 elections. The answers uncovered strong feelings about environmental issues – from across the political spectrum.
Politics still matter. We saw significant differences in the answers when we asked respondents their priorities for the environment.
Overall, the Greens and the ALP – unsurprisingly – ranked highly on policies to address environmental damage, climate change, renewable energy and threatened habitats/endangered species, with little difference in priority between these four issues.
Voters who intended to vote for an independent candidate had similar preferences, but a stronger preference for policies related to renewable energy and threatened habitats/endangered wildlife and a weaker preference for climate change policies.
Liberal Party voters were less concerned with all four sets of priorities than Nationals voters. Overall, Nationals voters rated policies relating to energy and environment the least favorably compared with other groups.
Interesting differences were found between voters who voted for fringe parties. One Nation voters are particularly interested in policies to protect threatened habitats, but they are least keen to see more policies on climate change. United Australia Party voters were similar, but not as keen on policies that address endangered species.
When we posed questions about the current government’s record on the environment, we found significant dissatisfaction, especially for those intending to vote for an independent candidate. While Liberal voters ranked the government record highly, those who planned to vote Liberal gave the government an average rating of just under 5/10.
We also asked respondents general questions on energy and environmental policies that could be applied to any level of government. It was clear that the top preference was for greater government investment in public transportation. This was followed by incentives to green homes, such as subsidies for insulation. A better regulation of plastics and emissions also ranked high.
Given the political climate wars raging over the last decade, it’s no surprise a carbon tax was the most unpopular preference.
So what can we learn from this poll. Voters are more concerned about the environment and willing to help.
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That’s a promising sign, if the next government can use this groundswell to bring in policies that would substantially accelerate our progress towards net zero emissions, and tackle our many other environmental threats.
Australia has been known for its slow progress on climate action in recent years. This survey shows that Australian voters have a strong desire to take action.
