That's the government job—making the transition affordable.
In the long arc of Britain's effort to wean itself from fossil fuels, the home has emerged as the most stubborn frontier. Heat pump installations — once surging at 56 percent growth — slowed to just 7 percent in 2025 after the government withdrew funding for lower-income households, exposing how fragile climate momentum becomes when affordability is left unaddressed. Nearly a fifth of the UK's carbon emissions rise from home heating, and the gap between ambition and action is widening at precisely the moment the country sweats under record temperatures that climate change itself has made more likely.
- A single policy withdrawal — the end of a grant scheme for lower-income homes — was enough to nearly halt the UK's heat pump transition in its tracks.
- With gas boilers still warming the vast majority of British homes and electricity costs among Europe's highest, the economics of switching remain out of reach for most households.
- Industry voices and independent climate advisors are aligned: without a new affordable financing mechanism, the government's decarbonization targets for home heating are in serious jeopardy.
- Electric vehicles offer a contrasting signal of what is possible when cost barriers fall, with one in four new cars now electric — though that progress has come at a £10 billion cost to manufacturers.
- The UK's overall emissions continue to decline, but the heat pump collapse, slow progress in farming and aviation, and patchy public charging infrastructure reveal a transition that is advancing unevenly and at insufficient speed.
The numbers tell a story of momentum lost. Heat pump installations in the UK grew by just 7 percent last year — a sharp reversal from the 56 percent surge recorded in 2024. The UK's independent climate advisors released these figures as part of their regular assessment of national emissions progress, and the slowdown signals a genuine problem for the government's climate ambitions.
The cause is clear: the government withdrew a grant scheme designed to help lower-income households afford the technology. Home heating accounts for nearly a fifth of Britain's total carbon emissions, and the vast majority of households still rely on gas boilers. The existing Boiler Upgrade Scheme offers a £7,500 grant, yet households still face bills exceeding £2,500 after that support. A previous scheme had fully funded installations for lower-income homes, but was withdrawn following reports of poor workmanship. Industry figures and climate advisors agree that a new funding mechanism is essential — and that the UK's unusually high electricity costs make the challenge even steeper.
Electric vehicles tell a different story. One in four cars purchased in the UK is now an EV, with a fuel price spike linked to tensions in Iran accelerating the shift. Climate Change Committee CEO Emma Pinchbeck pointed to the numbers as evidence of what people choose when costs align with their interests. Yet manufacturers warn that enormous discounts have cost the industry more than £10 billion since 2024, and the sector is pressing the government to ease its Zero Emission Vehicles mandate — a move the climate committee opposes.
One London resident who switched to a secondhand EV this year found the transition more manageable than expected, but flagged a telling gap: without a home charger, public infrastructure costs him up to ten times more per charge. It is a microcosm of the broader pattern the climate advisors identified — progress is real, but uneven, and too slow across heating, farming, and aviation alike.
The UK remains among the leading nations on emissions reduction overall. But the heat pump slowdown exposes a vulnerability in that record. As parts of the country face red weather alerts and temperatures approaching 40 degrees Celsius — extremes made more frequent by climate change itself — the distance between the country's ambitions and its infrastructure for achieving them has rarely felt more consequential.
The numbers tell a story of momentum lost. Heat pump installations in the UK grew by just 7 percent last year—a sharp reversal from the 56 percent surge recorded in 2024. The UK's independent climate advisors released these figures this week as part of their regular assessment of the country's progress toward cutting planet-warming emissions, and the slowdown signals a genuine problem for the government's climate ambitions.
The culprit is straightforward: the government withdrew a grant scheme designed to help lower-income households afford the technology. Heat pumps represent a central piece of Britain's decarbonization strategy. Nearly a fifth of the country's total carbon emissions come from home heating, and the vast majority of British households still rely on gas boilers. The government's goal is to transition most properties to heat pumps, which run on electricity rather than gas—electricity that can increasingly come from renewable sources like wind and solar. But for most people, the upfront cost is prohibitive. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme currently offers a £7,500 grant toward installation, yet households still face bills exceeding £2,500 after that support. The government had previously operated the ECO scheme, which fully funded heat pump installations for lower-income homes, but withdrew it following reports of poor workmanship and botched jobs.
The climate advisors and industry groups agree: a new funding mechanism is essential. Bean Beanland, former director of the Heat Pump Association, framed the challenge plainly. He compared the shift to heat pumps with earlier transformations in how homes function—the arrival of running water, indoor sanitation, central heating itself. Each was a transition that required affordability to succeed. "That's the government job," he said. The problem extends beyond the grant itself. The UK has some of Europe's highest electricity bills, driven by network upgrades and energy charges. If people are going to heat their homes with electricity instead of gas, the cost of that electricity matters enormously.
Electric vehicles tell a different story. One in four cars being purchased in the UK today is now an EV, and sales continue to climb. Emma Pinchbeck, CEO of the Climate Change Committee, credited this progress and noted that a fuel crisis in Iran—which spiked petrol and diesel prices—accelerated the shift. "We can see in the numbers what people want," she said. "Cheap cars and cars that will save them money, particularly as fossil fuels are volatile." But the Society of Motor Manufacturers offered a darker reading: manufacturers have offered enormous discounts to drive EV sales, costing the industry more than £10 billion since 2024—money that should have gone into research, manufacturing, and workers. The industry body supports the government's plan to weaken its Zero Emission Vehicles mandate, which sets targets for EV production and penalizes manufacturers who miss them. The climate committee disagreed, urging the government to keep the policy intact.
Nicholas Theobald, a London resident, switched to a secondhand EV earlier this year, motivated partly by anxiety about dependence on fossil fuel-producing countries. After five months, he said he was surprised by how manageable the transition proved. But he highlighted a critical gap: without a home charger, he relies on public charging infrastructure, which costs him up to ten times more than home charging would. This points to a broader pattern the climate advisors identified—the government is moving too slowly on numerous fronts. Progress in farming and aviation remains minimal, and these delays risk the country missing future emissions targets.
Overall, the UK's carbon emissions did continue to fall, placing the country among a leading group of nations on climate progress. But the heat pump slowdown exposes a vulnerability in that record. The transition from gas heating to electric heat pumps cannot succeed on ambition alone. It requires affordability, infrastructure, and political will to sustain support even when early implementations stumble. Without those elements, the government's climate targets—and the country's ability to reduce its contribution to warming—remain at risk. This week, parts of the UK are under red alert for extreme heat, with temperatures expected to approach 40 degrees Celsius. The Met Office has confirmed that such extremes are made more likely and more frequent by climate change itself.
Notable Quotes
This transition in our homes is no different to the ones we've had before. Fresh running water in homes, indoor sanitation, central heating, heat pumps. It's just another transition. We have to find a way to make it affordable. And that's the government job.— Bean Beanland, former director of the Heat Pump Association
We can see in the numbers what people want—cheap cars and cars that will save them money, particularly as fossil fuels are volatile.— Emma Pinchbeck, CEO of the Climate Change Committee
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why did the government pull the ECO scheme if it was funding heat pumps for people who couldn't otherwise afford them?
There were reports of botched installations—poor workmanship, systems that didn't perform as promised. It became politically difficult to defend. But in pulling it, they removed the only mechanism that made heat pumps accessible to lower-income households at all.
So now there's the Boiler Upgrade Scheme with the £7,500 grant. Why isn't that enough?
Because a heat pump installation can cost £10,000 or more. After the grant, you're still looking at £2,500 or more out of pocket for most people. That's a barrier that doesn't exist for gas boilers, which are cheaper upfront. You're asking people to pay more for something that's supposed to help the climate.
But electric vehicles are selling well. What's different there?
Manufacturers are heavily discounting EVs to hit sales targets—they've spent over £10 billion on discounts since 2024. That's not sustainable, and it's not a model you can replicate for home heating. You can't subsidize every heat pump installation that way.
The electricity bills are expensive too, though. Even if someone installs a heat pump, running it costs more than gas heating in the UK.
Exactly. You're asking people to make a capital investment in a technology, then pay higher operating costs because the electricity grid is expensive. The government has to address both sides of that equation, not just the installation cost.
What does the climate committee actually want the government to do?
They want a new grant system—something sustainable and well-designed. They also want the government to tackle electricity costs directly. And they want the ZEV mandate for cars to stay in place so manufacturers keep investing in EVs rather than relying on discounts.
Is there any sign the government is listening?
Not yet. The heat pump numbers speak for themselves. Growth collapsed the moment the funding disappeared. That's the clearest signal possible that policy matters more than good intentions.