British consumers urge Government to lead Green Revolution on World Environment Day

05 June 2009

Lack of decisive leadership is holding back urgent action on climate change and threatening the UK’s economic recovery according to a nationwide survey of UK adults released by green energy pioneers Ecotricity, today, 5th June, World Environment Day.

The survey results revealed overwhelming public support for new green initiatives that can help lift the UK out of recession, create new jobs and fight climate change. But the results also showed that with the current lack of leadership and low financial investment, people feel our Government is letting the UK fall behind other countries in a world faced with serious economic and climatic problems and rapidly depleting resources.

• Eight out of ten (78 per cent) people are calling for real leadership to create a much needed Green Revolution in Britain

• Three quarters of people (75 per cent) believe investing in green technologies such as wind and solar energy will stimulate our flagging economy and create new jobs

• Six out of ten people (58 per cent) think lack of political leadership from the government is holding back the green revolution in Britain

• 85 per cent of people said they were concerned about climate change and its impact on the planet

The NOP survey that questioned 1,000 UK adults last month, goes on to show that people feel Britain should be building up its own green economy to harnesses the country’s unique natural resources. Yet despite Government promises to help tackle climate change, total funding for a new green economy accounted to just 0.6 per cent of the recent £20bn UK stimulus package (source: New Economics Foundation).

• Eight out of ten people (79 per cent) say that Britain, as a nation of inventors, must lead the rest of the world in a Green Revolution, not fall behind

• 82 per cent say that, as one of the windiest countries in the world, Britain should be harnessing the power of the wind as part of the Green Revolution

• Nine out of ten (90 per cent) think the Government should be investing in renewable resources to create sustainable, green energy for the UK

Dale Vince, founder of Ecotricity, says: “A target of Zero Carbon Britain is radical but essential. If we want sustainable living and a future worth having we should aim for nothing less. People in the UK are calling for strong leadership on green issues - the Government needs to wake up and respond to our needs.”

Brits willing to make a difference
The survey also revealed that 60% of consumers want to take action but feel powerless and are not clear on what actions will make the biggest difference. Meanwhile, 73% feel that any actions they take will have limited impact. But 85% of people said that they are concerned about climate change and the impact on our planet.

Time to take action!
Dale Vince, founder of Ecotricity says: “What people don’t realise is that they have the power to change things. Generation of conventional electricity is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions the UK. The single most effective thing that anyone can do is to switch to a clean energy provider.”

-ENDS-

For more information, interviews, and spokespeople, please contact:
Anna Guyer, The Spring Consultancy
annaguyer@thespringconsultancy.com 07976 556 164
Sophie Rivett-Carnac, The Spring Consultancy
Sophie@thespringconsultancy.com 07855 834 430

Notes to Editors
Ecotricity, the leading independent British green energy company, has invested a total of £50 million into building new sources of green energy, accounting for over 8% of wind turbines in England. Ecotricity has 15 operational wind parks with a total of 51 turbines – that’s a 52 MW capacity, serving 30,000 homes and saving more than 100,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

As Ecotricity is a not for profit model and has no external shareholders or investors, it is free to dedicate all of its money to its mission – to change the way electricity is made in the UK. For the last five years – Ecotricity has invested an average of £450 per customer per year in new sources of green energy. The six biggest energy companies each spent less than £30 per customer over the same period.

What Ecotricity does is unique – it takes the money that its customers spend on their electricity bills and puts it back into building new forms of clean power. Ecotricity built its first wind turbine in 1996 and it is proud to have built its fiftieth wind turbine in 2008 – that is 9% of England’s wind energy. See www.ecotricity.co.uk