People in Germany believe that politicians and consumers share equal blame for slow progress in climate action. In a survey commissioned by the E.ON foundation on the main reasons behind the country’s inability to reach climate targets like CO2 neutrality quicker, around 45 percent of respondents chose “a lack of will or courage in politics” and 43 percent “consumer behaviour”.

These were followed by “a lack of innovation from industry” (37%) and “the financial system doesn’t take account of climate protection” (27%).

Less than 19 percent saw “insufficient social pressure” as one of the main reasons. When asked to choose the best options to improve climate protection, most people (36%) named a faster coal exit followed by a duty to install solar arrays on new buildings, higher prices for meat and a speed limit on autobahns (29% percent each).

Less than 9 percent chose a combustion engine ban, according to CLEW.