Four times as many people want to maintain nuclear energy usage as want to phase it out, new survey finds
September 2025 - Utilities
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Four times as many people want to maintain nuclear energy usage as want to phase it out, new survey finds: Seven in ten (67%) people want to uphold the use of nuclear energy compared to one sixth (16%) that would choose to gradually discontinue usage all together. The survey also discovered just under a quarter (23%) have nuclear energy as their preferred clean energy source, coming second only to onshore wind (29%).
The data comes from the 2024 Public Attitudes towards Clean Energy (PACE) survey which was conducted by Savanta on behalf of Radiant Energy Group. There were 1000 respondents from the UK sample and the data was collected from 25 November to 20 December 2024. The purpose of the study was to measure support/opposition for clean energy so it can be used to inform industry, government and investors of what the public expects from these energy sources.
Support for nuclear energy still remains relatively strong with just under two fifths (37%) of people agreeing it should be used to generate electricity, only a 6% drop from 43% in 2023. Another question based on policy approach with nuclear energy found that just over a quarter (26%) of respondents would like the country to keep, build and subsidise the development of nuclear plants showing increasing support for government intervention.
However, it is not all positive for the nuclear industry as concerns about the health and safety of the energy source are still rife. Nearly four fifths (77%) of people are either fairly or very concerned about the health and safety implications of nuclear’s use, with a similar pattern showing across all countries involved in the survey. Respondents made claims that it is too ‘dangerous’ whilst referencing the Chernobyl disaster. Not only were there concerns about the safety, but there were also questions over the disposal of nuclear waste. Just over eight in ten (84%) were worried about the implications regarding waste management.
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