Issue Eroding public support for climate measures and policy reversals

Summary

The report finds that many consumers and businesses dislike climate measures because of their cost, the behavioural change they demand, a sometimes perceived unfairness and the restrictions they bring. This resistance weakens public support for climate action. Politicians feel encouraged by such voices to water down policy, as happened with the Green Deal, whose agriculture and nature restoration goals were adjusted after the new European Parliament took office amid large farmer protests across Europe. Policy discontinuity puts companies investing in sustainability at a disadvantage. The report identifies the tension between climate goals and social justice as the main one, and explains that a shift to sustainable consumption depends not only on cost but also on convenience, habits, social norms, information, infrastructure and status.