Research and analysis

Public attitudes to network infrastructure: an online experiment testing rationales for building new network infrastructure

Social research testing how different messages about electricity network infrastructure affect views on its acceptability.

• From: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
• Published: 24 July 2025

Documents

Public attitudes to network infrastructure: report

PDF, 357 KB, 38 pages

Public attitudes to network infrastructure: appendices

PDF, 301 KB, 54 pages

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Public attitudes to network infrastructure: data tables

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 1.24 MB

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Public attitudes to network infrastructure: technical note

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Details

This research looks at how different messages affect public attitudes to new electricity transmission infrastructure. 

The study tested five message themes: climate, energy security, efficiency, jobs, and community. The study found acceptability of new infrastructure was high across all groups. Messages focused on job creation and climate change were associated with small increases in support at a national level – and none of the messages led to a reduction in acceptability. 

The research also explored how messages were perceived, and how attitudes varied across demographic groups. It also found that people want more information about how infrastructure might affect energy bills, what the local benefits are, and where new infrastructure is likely to be built. 

Verian UK produced this report in June 2024 for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Published 24 July 2025