Climate change top issue for Australian voters: Poll

Canberra, April 22 (SocialNews.XYZ) Climate change, cost of living and the economy are the most important issues to Australians in the general election to be held on May 21, a new poll revealed on Friday.

State broadcaster the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) published data from Vote Compass, which asks voters where they stand on a series of major issues before telling them which party they most closely align with, reports Xinhua news agency.

It revealed that 29 per cent of voters identified climate change as their most important issue for how they will vote in the election.

However, only 8 per cent of people who said they intend to vote for the governing conservative Coalition identified climate change as an important issue compared to 30 per cent of supporters of the opposition centre-left Labor Party and 50 per cent of people who vote for the left-wing Greens.

The Coalition has promised to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030 and has committed to a 2050 net zero target.

Under Labor's climate policy, emissions would be cut by 43 per cent by 2030.

Cost of living and the economy rated as voters' next biggest concern, with 13 per cent of 97,159 Vote Compass participants choosing each, followed by government accountability, the environment, and healthcare.

More than a third of Coalition voters chose the economy as their biggest issue followed by the cost of living and defence and public security.

Among Labor voters, climate change was followed by government accountability and cost of living.

Only 7 per cent of Labor supporters said the economy was their biggest concern.

Source: IANS