The most devastating thing about this survey is not what it says about energy policy but what it says about our democracy.

70% of Australians think energy policy should be about reliable cheap supply, not about stopping storms, and 70% don’t want to even spend $1 a week saving the world from climate change. Despite this, neither major party stands for that 70%.

Imagine what our election campaign would look like if both parties were trying to win over voters?

The Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) asked 1,007 Australians “How much would you personally be willing to pay each year for Australia to reduce its emissions to zero by 2050?” And 42% said “Nothing at all”. Nine out of ten Australians don’t want to spend much at all. Yet somehow both major political parties agree to spend billions every year on a transition we don’t have to have.

We don’t have to have wind or solar power, big batteries, big interconnectors, big Snowy 2.0 and we don’t have to buy international carbon credits.

Bear in mind Australians are not paying $50 or $100 a year on climate bills, they’re paying $1,300 a year.*

So state and federal governments are spending […]