Rising climate scepticism shows 'vested interests propaganda machine is working'

ONE in four British citizens believe that concerns about climate change have been exaggerated, according to research published today, with campaigners warning that propaganda on behalf of vested interests is working. The research, carried out for the Times by YouGov and the opinion consultancy Public First, was compared with another study carried by the newspaper in 2021. Since then, the number of Britons who think the dangers of global warming have been exaggerated has soared by more than 50 per cent, the survey suggested. Out of the 1,600 polled in 2021, 16 per cent believed warnings about climate change are not as real as scientists have said, compared with some 25 per cent today. Similarly, 16 per cent now think global warming is not the result of human activity, a rise of 5 per cent over four years. And the number of people who have confidence in the government’s pledge to reach net zero by 2050 halved from 32 per cent to 15 per cent. Shaun Spiers, head of the Green Alliance, told the Times that the think tank has seen a “concentrated, well-funded attack on net zero for several years now." “Anybody who gets their news from GB News, for instance, is getting a lot of scepticism all the time.” A 2023 DeSmog investigation found that the channel’s co-owner Paul Marshall had over £1.8 billion invested in fossil fuels. Reform’s Nigel Farage, a channel regular, has called for net-zero policies to be scrapped and for Britain to be “self-sufficient” in gas. The survey shows that the “vested interests propaganda machine is working,” an Extinction Rebellion spokesperson told the Morning Star. “We should expect [so, given] the money they pump in to deceive people. “This campaign of disinformation, if allowed to continue, will lead to thousands, if not millions, of unnecessary deaths.” Only 30 per cent of the public are in favour of banning new petrol and diesel cars, compared with 51 per cent previously, the Times reported. Just 16 per cent said they would be prepared to pay higher gas bills to encourage the switch to electricity. Green Alliance polling shows that two in five people will struggle to pay their bills this year. Mr Spiers added: “It’s no surprise that politicians who overstate the costs, and underestimate the benefits, of a greener economy are getting traction.”