CET Lunch: Willing to Pay for the Green Transition? The Role of Social Assistance and Temporary Energy Support

The energy transition has become increasingly contentious in European politics, particularly following the energy crisis beginning in 2021. While citizens often support renewable energy in principle, concerns about affordability reduce their willingness to accept higher energy prices, creating a central policy dilemma for governments. This study examines two welfare state instruments—means-tested social assistance and targeted temporary energy support—that may enable public support for higher energy prices during crisis conditions. Drawing on Eurobarometer 97.4 survey data combined with macro-level indicators from the OECD Energy Price Tracker and the Social Policy Indicators database across 24 countries, the study applies multilevel regression analysis to test these relationships. The theoretical framework builds on welfare state research, suggesting that social assistance alleviates economic hardship by raising the income floor, while temporary energy support cushions households most exposed to price shocks. Preliminary findings indicate that means-tested social assistance increases willingness to support higher energy prices for the energy transition, whereas targeted energy support shows no significant effect. These results highlight the importance of identifying which specific welfare state policies can foster public acceptance of costly but necessary decarbonisation measures.

About the speaker

I am a PhD Candidate at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI), Stockholm University. My comparative research focuses on how welfare states can mitigate the unequal burdens of climate policy while fostering public support for a green transition.