Using the half glass point of view, Opposition leader Tony Abbott insisted on Monday that despite recent survey results showing more acceptance of the carbon tax, many Aussies still dislike the $23 per tonne carbon price.

He was reacting to a Nielsen survey released on the same day that there was a 13 per cent decline in number of Australians who felt they were worse off with the carbon tax, while 52 per cent said it had no impact on them.

"That means that a very, very large number are concerned," Brisbane Times quoted Mr Abbott.

"It's going to damage our economy, it's going to hurt our cost of living and it's not going to do anything at all to help the environment," said the Coalition leader who is banking on public support for his promise to repeal the carbon tax if he becomes prime minister in 2013.

The changing numbers led Labor leaders to call Mr Abbott's scare campaign as rubbish. Besides the significant number of Australians who are beginning to favour the carbon tax, there has also been a decline in the number of complaints about businesses using the carbon tax as an excuse to jack up their prices.

If Mr Abbott were to pursue his scare campaign, he could perhaps concentrate of states such as New South Wales and Victoria where the households are paying higher carbon tax per week which averages $8.95. However, the weekly average is $1 less than the $9.90 forecast of the federal government.

A National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling study said that NSW residents need to shell out $3.32 per week on their electricity bills on account of the carbon tax, while they need to pay an extra $1.03 for food, 57 cents more for transport, 24 cents added for health, 12 cents more for clothing and footwear and 7 cents more for cigarettes and liquor.

Another good target for Mr Abbott's campaign is Victoria which actually has the highest carbon tax added cost at $9.52 a week. All the other states are weaker prospects for the scare campaign because it registered added carbon tax burden below the national average of $8.84. Western Australia logged $8.64, Queensland $8.61, Tasmania $7.56 and South Australia $6.60.

All in all, Australians still are ahead despite the added carbon tax cost because the average carbon compensation, which includes tax cuts and higher welfare benefits totaling $4 billion, is at an average of $10.10 weekly, the government said.

RELATED STORIES