Public backs clean power to strengthen UK energy security, new report reveals
A new report published today (June 10), commissioned by eleven leading energy trade bodies including Scottish Renewables, shows almost two-thirds (63%) of the public across the UK think clean power strengthens the UK’s security, held as a majority view across every political persuasion.
The report, Watt Communities Want: Six Insights into UK Public Opinion, sets out the views of 996 adults in Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland across all political voting intentions, who were surveyed between March 23 and April 20, 2026.
Undertaken by Early Studies, the polling uses two novel methods; social circle surveying and triple tense technique, and highlights six key insights from the data:
- People know clean energy makes the country more secure.
- Bills remain the top concern, but voters support the need to spread infrastructure costs over many years.
- Climate change and air pollution still matter.
- The public will back a flexible, storage-led energy system.
- Clean energy is now an industrial opportunity.
- Confusion remains around the reality of today’s energy system.
The results show that, although lowering energy bills remains the highest priority (72%), there is a clear understanding of the link between clean energy and energy security, and a call for investment rather than delay, with 50% wanting costs spread fairly, compared to 28% wishing to pay less now and incur greater costs later on.
When asked about excess renewable generation most people supported energy storage (57%) to build more flexibility into our system, and there was high backing for grid upgrades (46%). Fighting climate change is still important and ranks third of six options in 2026 (39%) rising to 49% in 2030 and ranking above energy security (44%) as what matters to people the most.
Of the seven options around our future energy needs, reducing air pollution ranked second in the national sample in 2026 (37%) and rose to be the top concern in 2030 (42%) although this varies by political affiliation.
Claire Mack, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables, said:
"These results underline strong public backing for the clean energy infrastructure needed to deliver a more resilient and prosperous future. After years of global volatility, now is the time to double down on our credible plan for homegrown power.
“That is especially true in Scotland where we must create the right conditions to unlock investment across all technologies and the critical grid infrastructure needed to deliver them. We must continue to earn and maintain public support, but we should also be clear that changing course would undermine our ability to stay competitive and realise the full economic value of clean energy deployment.”
Ends
- Read Watt Communities Want: Six Insights into UK Public Opinion.
- Read the joint press release by the eleven energy trade bodies.
The results, undertaken by Early Studies, uses a novel method called ‘Social Circle Surveying’, which asks respondents what they think people in their social circle (i.e. family, friends and colleagues) believe, rather than asking respondents what they themselves believe. Adapted from techniques used in political polling, the shift of asking respondents about their social circle matters because people are often more candid about views circulating around them than about their own, surfacing opinions that conventional polling can miss. The triple tense technique means respondents were asked what people think now, what they thought in 2020, and what they expect to think in 2030.
The organisations behind this polling represent the breadth of the UK's clean energy economy - from wind, solar and storage to heat, bioenergy, hydrogen, carbon capture, nuclear, and demand flexibility. Together, the ADE, BEAMA, the Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA), Energy UK, the Heat Pump Association (HPA UK), Hydrogen UK, the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA), the Renewable Energy Association (REA), RenewableUK, Scottish Renewables, and Solar Energy UK speak for thousands of businesses across the supply chain - developers, manufacturers, investors, operators, generators, and innovators - working to deliver the UK's clean energy transition at pace and scale.