New polling from the Local Government Association and YouGov
shows just 5 per cent of the public feel prepared for the impacts
of climate change, following recent years of excess heat,
flooding and storms.
The LGA, which represents councils across England and Wales, is
calling for the Autumn Statement to signal a rapid acceleration
in the work to get ready for the escalating impacts of climate
change.
The polling found the public trust their council the most to lead
the effort to prepare villages, towns and cities to the climate
impacts.
This includes measures to protect the most vulnerable, build
flood defences, secure local infrastructure, cool homes and
buildings, and to be ready for water and food insecurity.
It also found:
- More than 6 in 10 people (63 per cent) are worried about
climate change
- People are most worried about storms, flooding, and
heatwaves; and least worried about wildfires, and the impact on
the economy and public services.
- 1 in 10 people (12 per cent) think climate change will not
impact their area
Councils are also calling for government guidance on critical
thresholds for different weather patterns. This would include the
threshold temperatures that different services can change or
close, from play areas to libraries.
Cllr , environment spokesperson
for the LGA said:
“Councils want to play their full role in preparing people and
places for the impacts of climate change on local areas.
“As extreme weather events become more frequent and intense, the
public sense of unpreparedness will undoubtedly harden and grow.
“Councils are doing fantastic work to tackle climate change and
we want our communities to feel secure in their homes and local
areas. The public trust us most because we are rooted in
communities and understand places, we must be given the tools and
funding needed to make that happen.”
Notes to editors
- All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov
Plc. Total sample size was 2,112 adults. Fieldwork was
undertaken between 1st - 2nd November 2023. The survey was
carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are
representative of all adults in England and Wales (aged 18+).
Additional quotas were applied to sample by ethnicity.
-
The LGA’s Autumn
Statement submission warns that councils in England face a
funding gap of £4 billion over the next two years. In its
submission to the Chancellor, the LGA said the Government needs
to provide immediate funding so councils can deliver the
2023/24 budgets they set this year and ensure that councils
have sufficient resources to set balanced budgets next year
without having to make drastic cuts to services. It is
accompanied by appendices on key areas of council activity that
are experiencing sharp financial and/or demand pressures (adult
social care, children’s services and housing and homelessness
support).
-
Delivering net zero is a
priority for councils, with the submission calling on the
Government to back local climate action by devolving approaches
on ten missions: public trust, retrofitting social and fuel
poor homes, public buildings, local energy generation and grid
investment, whole place transport, jobs and growth, the natural
world, placemaking, rapidly escalating adaptation action, and
attracting private finance.
