Who Should Pay for Carbon Removal in the UK?
August 2025
Carbon removal must grow fourfold by 2050 to meet the UK's net zero targets, requiring billions in investment. But who should pay for this massive scaling effort? New research from Carbon Balance Initiative and CO₂RE, with researchers from Imperial College London and the University of Oxford, provides the first UK-wide analysis of public preferences for CDR policy, revealing clear patterns in how the British public wants carbon removal to be funded.
Key Findings
A nationally representative survey of 2,110 UK adults reveals strong public preferences for compliance-based policies and producer responsibility:
Producer responsibility has strong support: 48% want fossil fuel producers to pay for CDR, nearly three times more than those selecting users (16%)
Regulation is the most popular climate policy: 40% of respondents ranked “rules on companies to manage their carbon” as their top climate policy choice
VCMs and tax funding are unpopular: Only 17% strongly support voluntary carbon markets and 15% support income tax funding, vs 43% supporting legal requirements on companies
Pass-through costs don't undermine support for producer responsibility: 64% of supporters of producer responsibility already knew this would lead to potential price increases, and when informed, only 17% substantially changed their view
Direct willingness to pay for CDR is limited: When asked directly, two-thirds of respondents said they don’t want to pay any more taxes or prices to fund CDR, though one-third would accept 1-2% increases
Policy Implications
The findings suggest current government proposals for CDR funding may not align with public preferences. Existing policy relies heavily on voluntary corporate demand for removal credits, supported by government revenue. The research points toward compliance-based policies such as carbon removal mandates, which could mobilise private capital while maintaining public support.
These findings provide timely evidence for policymakers as the UK develops its long-term carbon removal strategy, particularly through the ongoing Independent Review of Greenhouse Gas Removals commissioned by Ed Miliband.
