Written question asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated) on Monday, 17 April 2023, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 May 2023. It was answered by Lord Callanan (Conservative) on Tuesday, 2 May 2023 on behalf of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Heat Pumps: Costs

Question: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address public concerns about the cost of replacing household gas or electric heating systems with air source heat pumps.

Answer: The Government is lowering costs through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides a £5000 grant towards the purchase of an air source heat pump and is available until 2028, and through zero rating VAT on air source heat pumps until 2027. This is part of a comprehensive policy package to grow the market to 600,000 installations a year by 2028 and work with industry to make heat pumps as cheap to buy and run as fossil fuel boilers. Further details are set out in the recent Powering Up Britain publications (2022) and the Heat and Buildings Strategy (2021).

Secondary information