Climate change and G20
Q. The G20 was established to discuss world economic issues. Some have proposed that climate change should be included in G20 discussions because it is an economic issue as well as an environmental issue. Do you think climate change should be discussed at the G20 meeting?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
| Should be discussed |
67% |
80% |
54% |
93% |
58% |
|
| Does not need to be discussed |
19% |
10% |
31% |
4% |
31% |
|
| Don’t know |
13% |
10% |
15% |
4% |
11% |
67% think that climate change should be discussed at the G20 meeting and 19% think it does not need to be discussed.
Liberal/National voters were more likely to be opposed (31%), although more than half (54%) thought it should be discussed.
Most important election issues
Q. Which are the three most important issues in deciding how you would vote at a Federal election?
|
Total 22 Apr 14 |
|
Vote ALP |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Grn |
Vote other |
|
23 Jul 13 |
30 Jul 12 |
6 June 11 |
25 Jan 10 |
|
| Management of the economy |
54% |
43% |
75% |
22% |
44% |
45% |
64% |
61% |
63% |
||
| Ensuring a quality education for all children |
27% |
35% |
18% |
38% |
20% |
25% |
26% |
26% |
23% |
||
| Ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system |
50% |
54% |
43% |
62% |
52% |
42% |
47% |
49% |
48% |
||
| Protecting the environment |
13% |
12% |
7% |
42% |
14% |
12% |
11% |
15% |
16% |
||
| A fair industrial relations system |
12% |
17% |
11% |
8% |
12% |
10% |
12% |
8% |
na |
||
| Political leadership |
15% |
11% |
24% |
6% |
13% |
21% |
25% |
17% |
23% |
||
| Addressing climate change |
10% |
13% |
4% |
28% |
9% |
11% |
9% |
15% |
16% |
||
| Controlling interest rates |
9% |
9% |
11% |
2% |
7% |
13% |
9% |
13% |
15% |
||
| Australian jobs and protection of local industries |
37% |
39% |
37% |
18% |
37% |
39% |
41% |
32% |
33% |
||
| Ensuring a quality water supply |
4% |
5% |
3% |
3% |
5% |
3% |
3% |
5% |
12% |
||
| Housing affordability |
17% |
18% |
16% |
13% |
19% |
17% |
13% |
16% |
14% |
||
| Ensuring a fair taxation system |
20% |
19% |
20% |
9% |
23% |
20% |
18% |
17% |
14% |
||
| Security and the war on terrorism |
5% |
3% |
8% |
3% |
5% |
8% |
5% |
8% |
9% |
||
| Treatment of asylum seekers |
8% |
5% |
5% |
32% |
9% |
14% |
10% |
5% |
na |
||
| Managing population growth |
9% |
6% |
10% |
8% |
16% |
9% |
8% |
12% |
na |
54% of people surveyed rated management of the economy as one of their three most important issues, followed by 50% ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system, 37% Australian jobs and protection of local industries and 27% ensuring a quality education for all children.
Main changes since this question was asked last July – management of the economy up 9%, ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system up 8%, political leadership down 6% and treatment of asylum seekers down 6%.
Climate change
Q. Do you believe that there is fairly conclusive evidence that climate change is happening and caused by human activity or do you believe that the evidence is still not in and we may just be witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate which happens from time to time?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
Nov 09 |
Dec 10 |
Jun 11 |
Oct 12 |
Oct 13 |
Jan 14 |
|
| Climate change is happening and is caused by human activity |
56% |
70% |
39% |
87% |
46% |
53% |
45% |
50% |
48% |
52% |
51% |
||
| We are just witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate |
34% |
23% |
51% |
5% |
39% |
34% |
36% |
39% |
39% |
36% |
39% |
||
| Don’t know |
10% |
7% |
10% |
8% |
15% |
13% |
19% |
12% |
13% |
12% |
11% |
56% (up 5% since January) agree that climate change is happening and is caused by human activity and 34% (down 5%) believe that we may just be witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate. This is the largest gap recorded between these figures since this question was first asked in 2009.
By age groups, those aged under 35 split 65%/22% and those aged 55+ split 42%/52%. People with higher education were more likely to think climate change is happening and is caused by human activity – those with university degrees split 66%/24%.
Actions on climate change
Q. Which of the following actions on climate change do you most support?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
Oct 13 |
|
| Keeping the carbon tax |
17% |
27% |
6% |
29% |
19% |
15% |
||
| Replacing the carbon tax with an emissions trading scheme |
22% |
30% |
14% |
35% |
19% |
21% |
||
| Replacing the carbon tax with the Liberal’s “direct action” plan |
12% |
4% |
23% |
4% |
13% |
15% |
||
| Dumping the carbon tax and not replacing it at all |
30% |
19% |
44% |
9% |
35% |
31% |
||
| Don’t know |
19% |
20% |
13% |
23% |
15% |
18% |
30% think the carbon tax should be dumped and not replaced, 22% support replacing it with an emissions trading scheme, 12% prefer the Liberal’s “direct action” plan and 17% think the Government should keep the carbon tax. These figures have changed little since this question was asked in October.
Those most likely to support keeping the tax or changing to an emissions trading scheme were Labor voters (57%) and Greens voters (64%) and those with a university education (51%).
Those most likely to think the carbon tax should be dumped and not replaced were Liberal/National voters (44%) and those who had not completed secondary education (43%). Only 23% of Liberal/National voters preferred the Liberal’s “direct action” plan (down from 28% in October).
Government handling of issues
Q. How would you rate the Federal Liberal-National Government for the way they have handled the following issues?
|
Total good |
Total poor |
Net score |
Very good |
Good |
Average |
Poor |
Very poor |
Don’t know |
|
| Managing the economy |
34% |
31% |
+3 |
12% |
22% |
29% |
16% |
15% |
6% |
| Treatment of asylum seekers |
37% |
36% |
+1 |
18% |
19% |
18% |
11% |
25% |
9% |
| Relations with other countries |
29% |
32% |
-3 |
8% |
21% |
30% |
13% |
19% |
8% |
| Education and schools |
28% |
35% |
-7 |
6% |
22% |
28% |
19% |
16% |
8% |
| Supporting Australian businesses |
27% |
34% |
-7 |
8% |
19% |
31% |
18% |
16% |
8% |
| Protecting the environment |
26% |
36% |
-10 |
7% |
19% |
28% |
14% |
22% |
9% |
| Social welfare |
27% |
39% |
-12 |
8% |
19% |
26% |
17% |
22% |
8% |
| Industrial relations |
26% |
38% |
-12 |
9% |
17% |
27% |
18% |
20% |
9% |
| Health services |
25% |
38% |
-13 |
6% |
19% |
29% |
20% |
18% |
7% |
| Climate change |
24% |
39% |
-15 |
10% |
14% |
28% |
13% |
26% |
9% |
| Supporting Australian jobs |
25% |
44% |
-19 |
8% |
17% |
26% |
20% |
24% |
6% |
The Government received negative rating for all issues except managing the economy (34% good/31% poor) and treatment of asylum seekers (37%/36%).
Highest negative ratings were given for supporting Australian jobs (25% good/44% poor), climate change (24%/39%), health services (25%/38%), industrial relations (26%/38%) and social welfare (27%/39%).
Other issue of most concern
Q. And which of these other issues are you personally most concerned about?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other/ indep-endent |
|
2 Sep 13 |
19 Nov |
|
| Climate change |
21% |
28% |
10% |
44% |
20% |
16% |
22% |
||
| Border security |
21% |
11% |
36% |
6% |
15% |
30% |
21% |
||
| Treatment of the aged |
20% |
21% |
21% |
8% |
22% |
17% |
18% |
||
| Marriage equality |
11% |
14% |
9% |
20% |
8% |
9% |
9% |
||
| Population growth |
10% |
12% |
8% |
10% |
14% |
12% |
14% |
||
| Treatment of the disabled |
9% |
9% |
8% |
9% |
16% |
7% |
8% |
||
| None of them |
5% |
4% |
5% |
5% |
4% |
5% |
4% |
||
| Don’t know |
3% |
2% |
2% |
– |
1% |
4% |
4% |
21% were most concerned about climate change, 21% were most concerned about border security, and 20% treatment of the aged.
There has been little change since this question was asked in November.
Border security (36%) was the main issue of concern to Liberal/National voters and 44% of Greens voters and 28% of Labor voters nominated climate change.
Climate change
Q. Do you believe that there is fairly conclusive evidence that climate change is happening and caused by human activity or do you believe that the evidence is still not in and we may just be witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate which happens from time to time?
|
Nov 09 |
Dec 10 |
Jun 11 |
Oct 12 |
Oct 13 |
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
| Climate change is happening and is caused by human activity |
53% |
45% |
50% |
48% |
52% |
51% |
70% |
29% |
80% |
46% |
||
| We are just witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate |
34% |
36% |
39% |
39% |
36% |
39% |
22% |
61% |
10% |
41% |
||
| Don’t know |
13% |
19% |
12% |
13% |
12% |
11% |
8% |
10% |
10% |
12% |
51% agree that climate change is happening and is caused by human activity and 39% believe that we may just be witnessing a normal fluctuation in the earth’s climate. This is a similar result to when this question was previously asked in October last year.
By age groups, those aged under 35 split 55%/32% and those aged 55+ split 43%/48%. People with higher education were more likely to think climate change is happening and is caused by human activity – those with university degrees split 59%/29%.
Extreme temperatures
Q. Do you think the recent extreme temperatures across Australia are likely or unlikely to be related to climate change?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
| Likely to be related to climate change |
52% |
72% |
33% |
73% |
52% |
|
| Unlikely to be related to climate change |
34% |
18% |
54% |
12% |
38% |
|
| Don’t know |
13% |
10% |
13% |
16% |
10% |
52% think that the recent extreme temperatures across Australia are likely to be related to climate change – 34% think they are unlikely to be related to climate change.
57% of those with university education believe they are related. 48% of those aged 55+ think they are not related.
Essential Report
Two Party Preferred: 14 May 2019
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