The government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme has been heavily criticised after recently published figures revealed that the scheme failed to meet the target number of boilers replaced by tax-subsidised heat pumps
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme had a budget of £150m which was intended to fund 30,000 heat pump installations. By the end of the scheme’s first year, less than 10,000 households received their £5000 subsidy voucher. The unspent money will now be returned to the Treasury.
What are the aims of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme?
The purpose of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is to support the decarbonisation of heat in buildings. The scheme aims to provide capital grants to support the installation of heat pumps and biomass boilers in homes and non-domestic buildings across England and Wales.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is open to any homeowner or owner of small business property in England and Wales. To apply for the scheme, applicants need their own property and to have a property with an installed capacity of up to 45kWt, as well as a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).
The Energy and Utilities Alliance (EUA), a leading UK energy trade body, has accused the UK Government of “selling British manufacturers down the river”.
The accusation comes after reports that British boiler makers will be fined when supplying UK consumers, while foreign manufacturers will not be. In an open letter, Mike Foster, CEO of EUA, asked the Minister, Lord Callanan, what assurances Germany, the Netherlands and France had made to ensure the ‘boiler tax’ would be paid.
“It takes a certain type of genius to fail to give away £150 million of taxpayers’ money, and this wretched scheme looks like it has done just that. When will the Government actually listen to the people, the majority of whom simply cannot afford a heat pump, subsidised or not,” said Foster.
“I suspect those who drew up this daft policy didn’t even check to see if it breached our international trade obligations under the newly agreed Brexit arrangements. A £5000 levy on each imported boiler sold in the UK might attract the attention of the EU’s trade negotiators. If the government has no plans to fine overseas business, as it does our own, then it’s simply saying farewell to jobs of British workers,” he continued.
The House of Lords has published an inquiry into the scheme’s failings
The House of Lords’ Environment and Climate Change Committee called for an urgent overhaul of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme last month. The committee argued that an overhaul is needed to expand the scheme’s uptake and improve public awareness of the programme.
The committee recommended a rethink of the assistance given to lower-income homes that could not install heat pumps, even with the grant funding on offer. The committee also expressed concern over the urgent need for upskilling and expanding the installer base to ensure heat pumps work effectively across different property types.
The Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee launched an inquiry into the failings of the Boiler Upgrade scheme and made a series of criticisms. The findings revealed that public awareness of low-carbon heating systems is very limited, and the promotion of the Builder Upgrade scheme has been poor. The inquiry also identified a lack of heat-pump installers and insufficient independent advice for homeowners.
The inquiry suggested that hydrogen was not an appropriate option for home heating in short to medium term. The report argued that misleading messages from the government have negatively affected the uptake of low-carbon home heating technologies, such as heat pumps.
The upfront costs needed to participate in the Boiler Upgrade Scheme have also been criticised. The committee argued that, even with the help of a grant, the upfront costs involved are too high for many households.
“Our industry has asked the government to meet to discuss our real concerns, but our request has fallen on deaf ears. It seems, quite literally, as if they want the British boiler industry to just go away,” concluded Foster.
