UK Inquiry Tracker

Decarbonising home heating

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 22 Mar 2024 Closed: 29 May 2024 Parliament page

Home heating made up 18% of all UK greenhouse gas emissions in 2021. In October of the same year, the Government published its Heat and Buildings Strategy, which has the ambition to end the installation of new fossil fuel boilers by 2035. It also commits to growing the supply chain … Read more Home heating made up 18% of all UK greenhouse gas emissions in 2021. In October of the same year, the Government published its Heat and Buildings Strategy, which has the ambition to end the installation of new fossil fuel boilers by 2035. It also commits to growing the supply chain for heat pumps to a minimum market capacity of 600,000 installations per year by 2028 – an eleven-fold increase from 55,000 heat pump sales in 2022. Heat pumps and heat networks are envisaged by Government as the primary low-carbon technology for the decarbonisation of home heating over the next decade. It also set 2026 as the year by which evidence would be developed to inform decisions on the future role of hydrogen in home heating. In March 2024, the National Audit Office’s (NAO) report on progress in decarbonising home heating found that trials of hydrogen schemes intended to support government decision-making are either delayed or cancelled. It also found that the Government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme has achieved a lower than expected uptake, with expectations for the increase in heat pump installations by 2028 based on optimistic assumptions. The Committee’s reports on the Renewable Heat Incentive (2018) and the Green Homes Grant Voucher Scheme (2021) found that both schemes underperformed, provided poor value for money, and were also based on over-optimistic promises. Based on the NAO report, the Committee will hear from senior officials at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), on how Government intends to deliver emission reductions in home heating, which will be key to meeting the overall target to achieve net zero by 2050. If you have evidence on these issues, please submit it here by 23:59 on 10 April 2024. Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere. This inquiry was closed due to the 2024 General Election. Show less

16 Recommendations

23 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

1 Letter

1 Event

Activity timeline 5 events

11 Jul
2025

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-seventh report from Session 2023-24

26 May
2024

Report published

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonising home heating

8 May
2024

Correspondence

Correspondence from Richard Warren, Director of Public Affairs, The Kensa Group, re Decarbonising Home Heating, dated 1 May 2024

24 Apr
2024

Oral evidence

Decarbonising home heating

24 Apr
2024

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

Decarbonising home heating

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

24 Apr 2024

View on parliament.uk

Decarbonising home heating

Ben Rimmington · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero David Capper · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero Jeremy Pocklington CB · Ministry of Defence

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonising home heating	HC 653	26 May 2024	39	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

11 results

11 Recommendation Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ plans to rebalance electricity and gas costs have been substantially delayed.

DESNZ plans to work on rebalancing the costs of electricity and gas, but it said that doing so is difficult because of large structural issues in the sector. It had aimed to rebalance costs to some extent by moving levies … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the recommendation to rebalance electricity and gas costs but defers the implementation date, stating it is dependent on further ministerial steers. It confirms it is considering ways to lower running costs for low-carbon technologies and highlights existing innovation programs.

HM Treasury

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12 Recommendation Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ removed insulation requirements for Boiler Upgrade Scheme grants to simplify applications.

Households can face a range of decisions when looking to install a heat pump. One such decision is whether to improve insulation to reduce energy usage and emissions. At the time of our evidence session, households were required to meet … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the implied recommendation to simplify the heat pump installation process but defers the implementation date, stating it is subject to ministerial steers. It references existing consumer advice tools and commits to further improving the heat pump landscape in a future Warm Homes Plan.

HM Treasury

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13 Recommendation Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ removed insulation requirements for heat pumps, making upgrades optional for homeowners.

We asked DESNZ why it had decided to change the minimum insulation standards required for heat pumps, and what impact it expected this decision to have. DESNZ told us that government had decided to leave insulation improvements as a choice … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the implied recommendation to address consumer experience challenges for heat pumps but defers a comprehensive approach, stating the implementation date is subject to ministerial steers. It highlights existing advice tools and a phoneline service and plans to set out further improvements in a future Warm Homes Plan.

HM Treasury

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15 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

Consumers face significant complexity understanding heat pump running costs and installation impact.

We noted that the installation of heat pumps could be a very complicated picture for consumers, and asked how an individual was expected to understand the running costs of a heat pump and the potential impact of installing insulation before … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees but defers the implementation date pending new ministerial steers. It highlights ongoing activities to simplify switching to low carbon heating for consumers and will detail further improvements in the Warm Homes Plan.

HM Treasury

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17 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ recognises need to significantly improve government digital advice for heat pump adoption.

DESNZ clarified that it was “working on making the Government digital offering in this space much better”. It added that it signposted to digital companies that helped households to calculate running costs and lifetime costs via gov.uk. It recognised, however, … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees but defers the implementation date pending new ministerial steers. It outlines ongoing activities to improve consumer support for low carbon heating and states it will further detail improvements in the Warm Homes Plan.

HM Treasury

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18 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

Meeting heat pump installation targets demands a substantial increase in trained installers by 2028.

We received written evidence from the Retrofit Academy, Schneider Electric, Energy UK and MCS Service Company which highlighted that meeting the target to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028 will require a large increase in the number of … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the recommendation to increase the number of trained heat pump installers and describes existing initiatives like the Heat Training Grant and new apprenticeships. However, decisions on future training support beyond April 2025 are deferred to Spending Review 2025.

HM Treasury

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19 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ invests in heat pump installer training, but sustained long-term commitment is essential.

DESNZ said that training new installers was a “growing industry”. It stated that it was investing £29 million from 2021–22 to 2024–25 to train installers in the heat sector. Part of this spend includes a £5 million Heat Training Grant … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees but defers decisions on future training support beyond April 2025 to Spending Review 2025. It acknowledges the need for more installers, highlights ongoing work like apprenticeship updates and establishing the Office for Clean Energy Jobs, and will work with industry.

HM Treasury

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24 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

Significant proportion of households face challenges, making heat pump installation difficult for properties.

In September 2023, the government announced that some homes may be exempt from the planned phase-out of new fossil fuel boilers in 2035. The government estimated that around a fifth of households might be exempt. Examples of such homes could … Read more

Government Response

The government accepts the committee's observations and commits to providing further information on properties unsuitable for traditional heat pumps and appropriate alternative technologies, aligning with the publication of its commissioned research report from Summer 2025.

HM Treasury

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25 Recommendation Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ yet to determine criteria for homes unsuitable for heat pumps, delaying exemptions.

In response to our question about how it would identify which homes are unsuitable for a heat pump and therefore exempt from the 2035 phase out, DESNZ said that it was some way from determining this, given the deadline was … Read more

Government Response

The government accepts the implied recommendation to identify homes unsuitable for heat pumps and to provide alternative low-carbon solutions, but defers the action to publish relevant research until Summer 2025. This research will detail properties not suitable for traditional heat pumps and appropriate alternative technologies.

HM Treasury

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26 Conclusion Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ identifies heat networks as key alternative for complex homes, investing significantly.

The NAO reported that DESNZ was yet to determine its approach for homes that are complex to decarbonise. DESNZ told us that it considered that heat networks would be the next major alternative low-carbon technology for people living in properties … Read more

Government Response

The government accepts the implied recommendation to determine an approach for homes complex to decarbonise, committing to publish a research report by Summer 2025. This report will provide further information on properties unsuitable for traditional heat pumps and appropriate alternative technologies.

HM Treasury

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38 Recommendation Deferred

Thirty-Seventh Report - Decarbonis…

DESNZ continues to lack an overarching delivery plan for power sector decarbonisation.

We examined, in a separate inquiry, DESNZ’s ambitions for decarbonising the power sector and concluded that it lacked an overarching delivery plan that would provide confidence to the private sector to invest in new and upgraded infrastructure. We also warned … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the recommendation but defers the implementation date pending new ministerial steers. It has appointed a 2030 Mission Control to accelerate critical clean energy infrastructure delivery, with further information to be announced.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 39 of 16 classified

Accepted 11

Accepted in Part 5

Acknowledged 9

Deferred 11

Rejected 3

Total 16 recs + 23 conclusions

Correspondence 1 letter

8 May 2024 Correspondence from Richard Warren, Director of Public Affairs, The Kensa Group, re Decarbonising Home Heating, dated 1 May 2024

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