Hundreds of thousands of UK homeowners stand to lose their eligibility for heat pump subsidies under proposed changes included in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Autumn Budget plan. The government intends to introduce a series of measures to curb rising energy costs, with one key move being the restriction of subsidies for eco-friendly heat pumps.
The plan involves removing energy efficiency levies from consumer bills and funding them instead through the government’s existing Warm Homes program. Consequently, heat pump subsidies will be limited exclusively to those receiving specific benefits from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Sam Alvis, head of energy and environment at the Institute of Public Policy Research, supports the goal of lowering bills but warns of the potential drawbacks: “The urge to get bills down is the right one, everything should be on the table. The risk here is that, like winter fuel payments, the additional benefit of cutting support schemes for clean technology isn’t noticed by the majority, but really is by those that lose out.”
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Echoing these concerns, Leo Vincent, senior policy adviser at the E3G thinktank, criticized the approach as short-sighted: “If this is really what the government is planning, it is robbing Peter to pay Paul. This is a disastrous sticking plaster ‘solution’ that would let down working families across the country who need the security of predictable and low bills. It would leave Britain vulnerable to the whims of fossil fuel despots, put thousands of jobs at risk and blow a hole clean through the UK’s plans for climate action.”
The announcement comes amid heightened political activity, including Labour leader Keir Starmer’s recent trip to Brazil for a leadership summit ahead of the COP conference. Starmer emphasized Britain’s commitment to clean energy, stating, “Britain isn’t waiting to act – we’re leading the way, as we promised. Clean energy doesn’t just mean energy security, so Putin can’t put his boot on our throat: it means lower bills for working families in every part of the UK.”