ipsos mori research on public attitudes to the uk’s energy challenges

© Ipsos MORI

Version 1 | Public

Public attitudes to the UK’s energy challenges,

and the role for consumers and businesses Ipsos MORI

© Ipsos MORI

How concerned are the public

about energy security and

affordability of supply?

© Ipsos MORI

5856

505050

4239

3636

3535

3330

282727

252323

1912

87

4

SwedenGermany

Great BritainJapan

USASouth Korea

AustraliaSouth Africa

SpainBelgium

ItalyCanadaPolandFranceChina

TurkeyHungary

ArgentinaIndonesia

Saudi Arabia India

MexicoRussiaBrazil

Base: Between 500-1010 respondents per country, February 2 - 14 2011

Q. What are the three most important environmental issues in your country? % Future energy sources and supplies

Source: Ipsos Global @dvisor

Brits care much more than most about energy security

© Ipsos MORI

5655

4844

4242

4040

3834

3330

2928

272727

252525

2321

199

South KoreaIndia

JapanMexico

BrazilIndonesia

CanadaSpain

GermanyArgentina

TurkeyAustralia

FranceSwedenBelgium

ItalyUSA

Great BritainHungary

Saudi ArabiaSouth Africa

ChinaPolandRussia

Base: Between 500-1010 respondents per country, February 2 - 14 2011

Source: Ipsos Global @dvisor

But Britain is less concerned than others about climate

change Q. What are the three most important environmental issues in your country?

% Global warming / climate change

© Ipsos MORI

The public are concerned about security of supply and

affordability

Base:1,822 British adults, aged 15 and over, 6th January-26 March 2010

Electricity will become

unaffordable

Supplies of fossil fuels (e.g.

coal and gas) will run out

The UK will become too

dependent on energy from

other countries

% Not at all concerned % Not very concerned % Fairly concerned % Very concerned

% Don't know/no opinion

Q. How concerned, if at all, are you that in the future…

Source: Cardiff University / Ipsos MORI

78%

81%

78%

© Ipsos MORI

How acceptable are renewables

and nuclear as a way of

meeting the UK’s energy

needs?

© Ipsos MORI

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Aug '98

Feb '99

Sep '99

Apr '00

Dec '00

July '01

Dec '02

Dec '03

Dec '04

Nov '05

Nov '06

Nov '07

Nov '08

Nov '09

Nov '10

Jun'11

Dec '11

Dec '12

Q. How favourable or unfavourable are your overall opinions or impressions of

the nuclear industry/nuclear energy?

Favourable opinion of the nuclear industry has slipped, though there is no growth in unfavourable opinion

Favourable Unfavourable

40%

17%

Base: All GB adults aged 16+ (1,000 – 2,000)

24%

28%

40%

19%

35%

18%

Source: NIA / Ipsos MORI

© Ipsos MORI

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Support Oppose

Q. To what extent would you support or oppose the building of new nuclear power stations in Britain TO REPLACE those that are being phased out over the next few years? This would ensure the previous proportion of nuclear energy is retained i.e. 18%.

Support for replacement nuclear newbuild slips, though positive balance continues

* Wording in 2001 was “To what extent would you support or oppose

the building of new nuclear power stations in Britain?”

19%

47%

36%

28%

50%

20% 20%

42%

# Wording up to 2011 was “This would ensure the current proportion

of nuclear energy is retained i.e. 18%”



© Ipsos MORI

Q. To what extent would you support or oppose the building of new nuclear power stations in Britain TO REPLACE those that are being phased out over the next few years? This would ensure the previous proportion of nuclear energy is retained i.e. 18%.

-10

0

10

20

30

40

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 (June)

2011 (Dec)

2012 (Dec)

Net support for newbuild

Net support for nuclear newbuild below its peak

+8

+29

Fukushima

+9 +5

-10

+30

+22



© Ipsos MORI

The public favour renewables over fossil fuels and

nuclear

Base: 1,822 British adults, aged 15 and over, 6th January-26th March 2010

Q. How favourable or unfavourable are your current overall opinions or impressions of the following sources for producing electricity...?

Sun / solar power

Wind

Hydroelectric

Biomass

Gas

Coal

Nuclear


Oil

% favourable

© Ipsos MORI

Q. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?

Base: 1,822 British adults, aged 15 and over, 6th January-26th March 2010;

1,491 British adults, aged 15 and over, 1st October – 6th November 2005


% Strongly agree % Tend to agree % Neither / nor % Tend to disagree % Strongly disagree % Don't know / no opinion

2005

2010 Britain needs a mix of

energy sources to

ensure a reliable

supply of electricity,

including nuclear

power and renewable

energy sources

However, there is acceptance of need for diverse energy mix

74%

63%

© Ipsos MORI


Base: 1,822 British adults, aged 15 and over, 6th January-26th March 2010;

1,491 British adults, aged 15 and over, 1st October – 6th November 2005


% Strongly agree % Tend to agree % Neither / nor % Tend to disagree % Strongly disagree % Don't know / no opinion

2005

2010 We need nuclear

power because

renewable energy

sources alone are not

able to meet our

electricity needs

… And this mix needs to include nuclear

55%

48%

© Ipsos MORI

There is some willingness to pay more for renewable energy

but less so for nuclear power

Your electricity comes

primarily from

renewables?

31

34

36

Your electricity comes

primarily from nuclear

power?

72

18

11

Base: 1,822 British adults aged 15 and over, 6th-January-26th March 2010

Q. Considering your current electricity bills, by how much, if at all, would you be willing to increase the amount that you pay per month in order to ensure that:


£0 £0

£2- £8

£2- £8

£10 and

over

£10 and

over

© Ipsos MORI

Q. To what extent would you support or oppose the following developments in your area? (By area we mean up to approximately 5 miles from your home)

But Not in My Backyard, for both nuclear and coal

Base: 1,822 British adults aged 15 and over, 6th January-26th March 2010

The building of a new

nuclear power station

The building of a new coal

power station

% Strongly support % Tend to support % Neither support nor oppose

% Tend to oppose % Strongly oppose % Don't know/ No opinion


21%

24% 60%

59%

© Ipsos MORI

Q. To what extent would you support or oppose the following developments in your area? (By area we mean up to approximately 5 miles from your home)

NIMBY-ism is less prevalent with Wind

Base: 1,822 British adults aged 15 and over, 6th January-26th March 2010

% Strongly support % Tend to support % Neither support nor oppose

% Tend to oppose % Strongly oppose % Don't know/ No opinion

The building of a new wind

farm


73% 16%

© Ipsos MORI

What steps are the public

willing to take to help address

the energy challenge?

• Public interest in renewable heating

• Public engagement with smart

metering

© Ipsos MORI

Most only think about gas for the future

Q. If you were going to replace your current heating system, what types of

heating system would you consider to heat both your home and hot water?

63%

10%

8%

4%

3%

3%

2%

2%

3%

5%

Gas boiler – combination (combi)

Gas boiler –but not combination (combi)

Gas boiler – not sure what type

Oil boiler –combination (combi)

Biomass boiler

Ground-source heat pump

Electric storage heaters

Gas Fire (mains)

Other, please specify

Refused / don't know

Mentions of 2% or more

Base: All GB homeowners aged 18+ who do not currently heat their home

mainly using a GSHP, ASHP, biomass boiler or heat network (2,848),

28th August to 14th October 2012

Source: DECC / Ipsos MORI

© Ipsos MORI

69%

60%

28%

24%

17%

16%

12%

18%

24%

19%

23%

15%

15%

15%

14%

17%

53%

53%

68%

69%

73%

Gas Condensing Boiler

Solar thermal

Ground Source Heat Pump

Biomass boiler

Air Source Heat Pump

Heat network, district or community heating

Micro-CHP

I have heard of it and I know what it is I have heard of it but I'm not sure what it is I have never heard of this

Low awareness of renewable options, other than solar


Base: All GB homeowners aged 18+ (2,900), 28th August to 14th October 2012

Q. Which of the following best describes the extent to which you had heard of

each of these ways of heating your home and/or hot water before

today?

© Ipsos MORI Source: DECC / Ipsos MORI

Q. Having seen this information, how would you say you feel about a...

Some renewable options do have appeal once explained

44%

11%

10%

8%

6%

6%

36%

35%

28%

26%

23%

20%

3

11%

17%

17%

21%

23%

2

7%

13%

15%

18%

21%

Gas Condensing Boiler

Micro-CHP

Ground Source Heat Pump

Heat Network

Air Source Heat Pump

Biomass Boiler

Very positive Fairly positive Fairly negative Very negative

Respondents were

shown basic information

factsheets about each

technology before

answering this question

Base: All GB homeowners aged 18+ who do not currently heat

their home through a more efficient heating system (2,848),

28th August to 14th October 2012

© Ipsos MORI Source: DECC / Ipsos MORI

Mixed opinions about solar thermal

Q. Having seen this information, how positive or negative do you feel about

using a solar thermal system to heat your water? Would you say you

are…

15%

30%

20%

16%

16%

3%

Base: All GB homeowners aged 18+ who own the roof on their property (2,521)

Very positive

Fairly positive

Neither positive nor

negative

Fairly negative

Very negative

Don‟t

know

© Ipsos MORI

Half of the public have never heard of smart meters

Base: Adults aged 18+ who are at least partly responsible for paying

household energy bills : 2,159 , 5th – 20th October 2012


5%

44% 50%

Yes, I have one Yes, but I don‟t have one No, never heard of them

Adjusted figure for ownership: 2%*

Q. Before today, had you heard of smart meters?

* Adjusted to account for overclaim due to

misunderstanding of smart meter

© Ipsos MORI

Half of British bill-payers are still undecided about

smart meters

Base: Adults aged 18+ who are at least partly responsible for paying household energy bills:

Wave 1 (2,396), 30th March – 26th April 2012; Wave 2 (2,159) 5th – 20th October 2012

9

7

23

22

45

48

12

11

8

8

4

4

Wave 1

Wave 2

Strongly support Tend to support No feelings either way

Tend to oppose Strongly oppose Don't know

32% support 20% oppose

29% support 19% oppose

Q. To what extent do you support or oppose the installation of smart meters in

every home?


© Ipsos MORI

9

9

32

31

25

27

28

27

5

5

Wave 1

Wave 2

Very interested Fairly interested Not very interested Not at all interested Don't know

Interest in smart meters highest among younger, and

larger households

Base: Adults aged 18+ who are at least partly responsible for paying household energy bills and have not had a

smart meter installed: Wave 1 (2,267), 30th March – 26th April 2012; Wave 2 (2,049) 5th – 20th October 2012

27

46

43

31

41

48

36

49

56

Aged 65+ (588)

Aged 35-64 (1,020)

Aged 18-35 (441)

1 person in HH (531)

2-3 persons in HH (1,055)

4+ persons in HH (460)

Never heard of (1,141)

Know at least a little (696)

Know a great deal/fair amount (180)

Significantly different interest between subgroups (95% confidence level) (Wave 2) % interested Base sizes in brackets

Q. To what extent would you be interested, or not, in having a smart meter

installed in your home in the near future?


© Ipsos MORI

Smart meters are expected to help households budget,

avoid waste and get accurate bills

16%

23%

3%

6%

6%

8%

9%

19%

26%

31%

17%

22%

4%

7%

9%

8%

7%

19%

26%

33%

Don't know

Nothing / no benefits

Energy Security

Tailored tariffs

Not having meter read

Environment

Influence others

Accuracy

Avoid waste

Budgeting

Wave 1 Wave 2



Q. What, if anything, do you think you would benefit from if you had a smart

meter installed in your home? (spontaneous)


© Ipsos MORI

Most think smart meters have no disadvantages,

although some are concerned about cost

19%

10%

7%

6%

1%

2%

3%

2%

41%

19%

17%

9%

8%

7%

4%

3%

2%

2%

39%

20%

Cost

Data security

Difficult to understand

Inconvenience

Checking usage too much

Reliability

Someone might lose their job

Health

Nothing

Don't know

Wave 1 Wave 2



Responses for the code „Checking usage too much‟ cannot be compared as it was added as a pre-code in Wave 2

Q. What, if anything, do you think are the disadvantages if you had a smart

meter installed in your home?


© Ipsos MORI


Base: 1,055 GB adults 16-64, 7-12 September 2012

It is important that companies

take action to try and ensure that

people in the future can live well,

while also living within the limits of

the planet

The companies that care about

people and the planet are

more likely to succeed in the long

term

Companies should just focus

on making as much profit as they

can

Total

agree %

71%

53%

9%

There is clear support for company sustainability

Source: Ipsos MORI Sustainable Business Monitor

© Ipsos MORI


Strongly disagree

Tend to disagree

Tend to agree

Most large companies in the UK are working for the long term good of everyone

Strongly agree (2%)

Neither agree nor disagree

Only 13% agree that most companies are working for the good

of everyone – half (47%) disagree

Don‟t know

But few think it is currently happening to any great extent

Q. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement?


© Ipsos MORI

• Q To what extent you agree or disagree with the following statement?

Companies need to prove they are responsible


Neither agree

nor disagree

Don‟t know Tend to disagree

Tend to agree

Strongly disagree (1%)

Strongly agree

I don’t think it’s enough for companies

to say that they are responsible, they

need to prove it to me

75% agree that companies need to prove that they are

behaving responsibly


Q. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement?

© Ipsos MORI

Q. When forming a decision about buying a product or service from a particular

company or organisation, how important is it that it shows a high degree of

social responsibility?

Majority say purchase decisions are informed by

corporate responsibility

Base: 954 GB adults 16+, 14-26 September 2012, asked face-to-face

Not at all important

Not very important

Very important

Fairly important

A quarter say responsibility is

very important to their purchasing

(74% say it is important to some degree)

Don‟t know


© Ipsos MORI

Version 1 | Public

For more information please contact:

Edward Langley – Head of Environment Research, Ipsos MORI

[email protected], 020 7347 3154

Antonia Dickman – Associate Director, Ipsos MORI

[email protected], 020 7347 3157

ipsos mori research on public attitudes to the uk’s energy challenges

News & Politics

ipsos global

ipsos moriq

ipsos mori0

ipsos moriversion

ipsos morithere

nia ipsos moribase

ipsos morihow acceptable

british adults