The UK General Election rumbles on and climate change and net zero raise their heads now and again. Only Reform UK are overtly anti-Net Zero, reheating a whole bunch of zombie climate denial arguments. The Conservatives continue to play their ‘pragmatic Net Zero’ card where the commitment to the target is ostensibly there, but any actual actions other than nuclear power and offshore wind are dismissed as ‘eco-zealotry’. All the other parties have at least something of a plan to hit Net Zero – and they represent 65% of the latest voting intention between them according to YouGov.

But what do the public actually think? According to the YouGov “How is the UK Government handling Climate Change” tracker:

• 48% believe Government is not taking enough action/spending
• 21% think Government is doing/spending too much
• 15% think it’s about right

So I find it more than a little bizarre that Reform UK and the Tories, with 35% of the current vote share between them, are trying to appeal to a 21% voting pool – a kamikaze strategy. While Reform UK have always leant into the climate denial end of the debate, the Tories should remember that the policies they are now against were put in place by the Conservative Party, in particular by Boris Johnson who led them to a crushing victory in 2019. Going back further, David Cameron’s ‘hug a husky’ environmental campaign helped rehabilitate the Tories in the eyes of the electorate before the 2010 election. Never mind the moral, economic and practical arguments, their current strategy makes no electoral sense whatsoever.