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Statements about energy

16 Jul 2018

Q. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements? 

  Total agree Total disagree   Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know
The government should fund up to $5bn to build new coal plants or extend the life of existing ones 40% 38%   14% 26% 20% 18% 23%
Coal fired power is cheaper than power generated by renewables 47% 24%   14% 33% 15% 9% 29%
The government should hold an inquiry into power prices and anti-competitive conduct by power companies 80% 9%   42% 38% 7% 2% 11%
Privately owned power companies should be returned to public ownership 63% 17%   30% 33% 14% 3% 21%
Burning of coal increases CO2 emissions which leads to climate change 61% 21%   26% 35% 13% 8% 18%
Further expanding coal mining and exports would undermine global efforts to address climate change 55% 24%   23% 32% 15% 9% 21%

A substantial majority agree that there should be an inquiry into power prices and energy companies (80% agree), power companies should be returned to public ownership (63%) and burning coal leads to climate change (61%).

Nearly half (47%) believed that coal-fired power is cheaper than renewables and respondents were split over whether the Government should fund coal plants.

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