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Majority think government doing too little on climate change, poll suggests
People take part in a Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion protest in Whitehall, central London

THE majority of the public thinks that the government is doing too little to tackle climate change, a poll suggests.

The survey for aid agency Cafod published today, ahead of international climate talks in Egypt, found that six in 10 people did not think the government is doing enough, while almost half did not think it was committed to its climate goals.

And more than a third thought Britain was not doing enough to support poorer countries tackle climate change, which is an issue that will be a key agenda item at Cop27.

Britain has legal net-zero targets by 2050 to end its contribution to global warming and hosted last year’s Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow.

But the government has come under fire for actions including offering 100 new licences for North Sea oil and gas drilling — even as experts warn there can be no new fossil fuel exploration if the world is to curb temperature rises to 1.5°C to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Cafod public policy lead Graham Gordon said that the reality of the climate crisis is already here in Britain — but warned that elsewhere in the world the consequences of climate change have been deadly.

“There is a devastating drought in east Africa leaving millions on the brink of famine and deadly floods in Pakistan which have wrecked communities and taken many lives,” he said.

“It has become painfully clear the government’s knee-jerk reaction to pursue more fossil fuels will not only cause more devastation but it’s against the public’s wishes too.”

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