Oct 2, 2025 05:39 PM
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1100313
INTRO: A new study has found that UK Members of Parliament (MPs) and the public overestimated the time left to meet a critical deadline for limiting global warming.
Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) surveyed a representative sample of the previous House of Commons, and the public in Britain, Canada, Chile and Germany, on their knowledge of a well-publicised statement from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
It related to when global greenhouse emissions need to peak to have a realistic chance of limiting the temperature increase to 1.5˚C above pre-industrial levels - the IPCC’s 6th assessment report said this needed to happen by 2025. Participants in the study were asked to choose from options ranging, in five yearly intervals, from 2025 to 2050.
The statement was a key communication of the report when published in 2022, and so the researchers say MPs – and members of the public who pay attention to current affairs – should have been exposed to the finding even if they had not read the report.
However the study, published today in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, found less than 15% of the 100 MPs surveyed knew the correct answer, while over 30% said 2040 or later. Labour MPs were more likely than Conservative MPs to answer correctly, when asked anonymously in autumn 2023.
A similar result was found in surveys of more than 7200 members of the public across Britain, Canada, Chile and Germany, although being younger, worried about climate change, and having lower levels of conspiracy belief mentality was associated with increased accuracy.
Co-author Dr John Kenny, from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and School of Environmental Sciences at UEA, said: “Our study has important implications for communicating about the climate crisis, not just through IPCC progress reports, but the many other reports policymakers are expected to digest and act upon.
“Institutions such as the IPCC need to consider how they can help policymakers absorb this information, if they are to incentivise appropriate policies - to act on it, individuals need to be aware of it. The partisan divides in Britain also suggest that whether information is perceived or not and, if so, how, may differ according to political mindsets.
“In a world of increasing information saturation and disinformation campaigns, getting factual information to filter through is no easy task, especially on a complex challenge like climate change. As time for meaningful action is running out, it is imperative we further understand how to effectively convey the key scientific messages to policymakers and the public.”
Dr Kenny added, “Understanding whether politicians have knowledge of these facts and how effectively the information is being communicated to them is vital, given that governments regularly follow differing if not contradictory policies to those that would be consistent with the reports’ findings.”
The IPCC assessment reports aim to provide an authoritative, objective source of information for parliamentarians and policymakers on climate change causes and effects, as well as outline routes for mitigation and adaptation. However, little is known about how aware they are of key findings and policy recommendations... (MORE - details, no ads)
INTRO: A new study has found that UK Members of Parliament (MPs) and the public overestimated the time left to meet a critical deadline for limiting global warming.
Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) surveyed a representative sample of the previous House of Commons, and the public in Britain, Canada, Chile and Germany, on their knowledge of a well-publicised statement from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
It related to when global greenhouse emissions need to peak to have a realistic chance of limiting the temperature increase to 1.5˚C above pre-industrial levels - the IPCC’s 6th assessment report said this needed to happen by 2025. Participants in the study were asked to choose from options ranging, in five yearly intervals, from 2025 to 2050.
The statement was a key communication of the report when published in 2022, and so the researchers say MPs – and members of the public who pay attention to current affairs – should have been exposed to the finding even if they had not read the report.
However the study, published today in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, found less than 15% of the 100 MPs surveyed knew the correct answer, while over 30% said 2040 or later. Labour MPs were more likely than Conservative MPs to answer correctly, when asked anonymously in autumn 2023.
A similar result was found in surveys of more than 7200 members of the public across Britain, Canada, Chile and Germany, although being younger, worried about climate change, and having lower levels of conspiracy belief mentality was associated with increased accuracy.
Co-author Dr John Kenny, from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and School of Environmental Sciences at UEA, said: “Our study has important implications for communicating about the climate crisis, not just through IPCC progress reports, but the many other reports policymakers are expected to digest and act upon.
“Institutions such as the IPCC need to consider how they can help policymakers absorb this information, if they are to incentivise appropriate policies - to act on it, individuals need to be aware of it. The partisan divides in Britain also suggest that whether information is perceived or not and, if so, how, may differ according to political mindsets.
“In a world of increasing information saturation and disinformation campaigns, getting factual information to filter through is no easy task, especially on a complex challenge like climate change. As time for meaningful action is running out, it is imperative we further understand how to effectively convey the key scientific messages to policymakers and the public.”
Dr Kenny added, “Understanding whether politicians have knowledge of these facts and how effectively the information is being communicated to them is vital, given that governments regularly follow differing if not contradictory policies to those that would be consistent with the reports’ findings.”
The IPCC assessment reports aim to provide an authoritative, objective source of information for parliamentarians and policymakers on climate change causes and effects, as well as outline routes for mitigation and adaptation. However, little is known about how aware they are of key findings and policy recommendations... (MORE - details, no ads)
