Take up of heat pumps ‘may be boosted if households shown running cost savings'

Banking and finance industry body UK Finance, which released the findings, said a blend of targeted policy measures is needed to encourage homeowners, landlords, and housing associations to retrofit their properties with 'green' technology.
Its Unlocking Demand for Green Home Finance report used YouGov research to show the attitudes of UK consumers specifically towards heat pump technology.
It said the UK needs to install around 1.5 million heat pumps per year by 2035 to meet its carbon reduction goals.
The research indicated that 54% of people felt the main barrier discouraging them from getting a heat pump was the up-front cost.
But 44% said they would switch if they were provided with a clear idea of the savings in running costs.
The report set out various recommendations, including establishing a government-led body or group to drive collaboration; launching a public awareness campaign with independent guidance; and providing grants, subsidies, and a coordinated plan to train sufficient tradespeople.
Clear long-term expectations should also be set, so that households and firms can make preparations and energy efficiency metrics should also be updated, UK Finance said.
Ian Bhullar, director of sustainability policy at UK Finance said: 'To meet our ambitious targets on greening the UK's housing stock we need to drive demand and convince the public of the benefits.
'Lenders are committed to playing their part and through the Government's Warm Homes Plan we have the opportunity to really make a difference.
'Increasing demand for green home improvements will bring significant benefits, stimulate job creation, drive innovation, and reinforce the UK's energy security in an increasingly volatile global market.'
More than 4,200 UK adults took part in the research in December 2024, among whom nearly 4,000 did not have a heat pump.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Daily Mirror

an hour ago

• Daily Mirror

'Right way' to use mosquito repellent on holiday

Travellers should always check NaTHNaC's information pages for specific location-based information regarding disease risks Mosquito bites aren't just frustratingly itchy - they can pose a considerable health risk when travelling to different parts of the world. Malaria, dengue, Zika and yellow fever are all diseases transmitted by these insects, potentially causing severe illness, which can sometimes be deadly. It's important to check the proper advice for your summer holiday destination, and equally important to use repellent correctly. Repellents need to be applied both day and night, indoors and outdoors, in regions where mosquito-borne diseases are prevalent. ‌ Government advice, updated in 2023, suggests: "A product with 50% DEET is recommended as a first choice. If DEET is not tolerated, use of a repellent containing the highest strength formulation available of either icaridin (20%), eucalyptus citriodora oil, hydrated, cyclised or 3-ethlyaminopropionate is recommended." ‌ While you may be tempted to apply repellent before sunscreen, the Government warns that it should always be used afterwards for the most effective results. Using suncreams with an SPF of 30 to 50 is also key, as DEET can reduce their potency. Most repellents must be reapplied frequently, especially in hot countries and after spending time in the pool or sea. However, users are encouraged to read each repellent's packaging for more specific guidance. "50% DEET is safe for those pregnant and breastfeeding and for babies older than two months," the Government's guidance adds. "Get advice before you travel from your doctor or pharmacist if your baby is aged under two months. READ MORE: PMDD red flags as Vicky Pattison opens up about health battle "Take insect repellents with you—in case of shortages at your destination." It's also worth wearing long-sleeved clothing, trousers, long dresses, and socks to stop mosquitoes from reaching the skin. Nets treated with insecticide are recommended too, particularly in situations where you might be sleeping outdoors or in a space without air conditioning. ‌ The Government adds: "Check your net for rips and tuck the ends under the mattress. There may also be a risk of bites from ticks and other insects; the same protective measures will help reduce bites from these too..." Travellers should always check NaTHNaC's information pages for more specific location-based information regarding disease risks. Four to six weeks before a trip, visiting a practice nurse, GP, or pharmacist is generally advisable, as vaccinations and medications may be encouraged in certain situations. ‌ "Yellow fever vaccine is recommended for certain countries, and antimalarial tablets may be advised to protect against malaria for some destinations," the Government adds. "If you have health problems, are pregnant or planning pregnancy it is particularly important to get tailored pre-travel advice six to eight weeks before travel. With careful preparation, most pregnant women are able to travel without experiencing health problems." You can also head to the Government's website for further insights. Three key ways to prevent mosquito bites while travelling Use mosquito nets in situations where you are sleeping outside or in spaces without air conditioning Frequent and correct application of insect repellent - putting it on after sun cream Wear long-sleeved clothes, socks, trousers and long skirts where possible

Powys County Times

2 hours ago

• Powys County Times

Starmer puts skills training at heart of industrial strategy plan

Sir Keir Starmer will set out his industrial strategy on Monday as he seeks to kickstart the stuttering economy and reduce the UK's reliance on foreign workers. The decade-long plan for 'national renewal' will include £275 million in skills investment to train Britons to do jobs in growth industries which might otherwise require imported labour. The strategy will include specific funding to train people for work in defence, engineering, digital and construction roles. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the strategy 'will help transform our skills system to end the overreliance on foreign labour and ensure British workers can secure good, well-paid jobs in the industries of tomorrow and drive growth and investment right across the country'. Monday's industrial strategy will be followed later in the week by a new trade plan intended to make the UK the best-connected country in the world to do business. The Prime Minister will launch the industrial strategy hoping it will help in his mission of delivering economic growth. The economy shrank by 0.3% in April, the biggest monthly contraction in gross domestic product for a year-and-a-half, as businesses felt the impact of global uncertainty caused by Donald Trump's tariffs and domestic pressure as a result of hikes to firms' national insurance contributions. Around one-in-seven young people are not in education or employment, and the number of people taking an apprenticeship has fallen by almost a fifth between 2016/17 and 2023/24. The Government hopes the growth sectors identified in the industrial strategy will create 1.1 million new jobs by 2035. The skills package includes capital investment from a £200 million fund which will support new facilities including 'technical excellence colleges' providing specialised training for local industries. The total funding is expected to train thousands more workers by 2029 including computer programmers, IT technicians, electrical and civil engineers. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'Skills rightly run right through the heart of this industrial strategy because they are key to breaking the link between background and success for young people and delivering prosperity for our country.' Stephen Phipson, the boss of manufacturers' organisation Make UK, welcomed the skills announcement. 'We look forward to working with the Government to fix the skills gap in manufacturing, which has been the sector's Achilles' heel for decades,' he said. Other elements of the plan are expected to include measures to help cut energy costs for industries which have complained they are being forced to compete with rivals overseas who face lower bills. Meanwhile some £380 million will be spent on a range of projects intended to double private investment in the creative industries. Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith welcomed the investment in skills but said 'the Government are stepping on the accelerator and the brake at the same time' by hiking national insurance for firms and introducing extra employment rights which could increase costs. 'This inherent contradiction cannot make for a feasible or serious strategy, and will hold the Government to account for it,' he said.

Daily Mail​

2 hours ago

• Daily Mail​

MAIL ON SUNDAY COMMENT: Dogma cares little for the state of Britain's economy

This country's economy is now in serious peril. This is not only because the Government is nudging at the very outer limits of what it can raise in tax and borrowing – though it is. It is also because that government is increasingly driven by ferocious dogma which cares little for such concerns. It may be that some in the Cabinet can see the danger, yet others do not even view it as a danger, but as an opportunity for yet more upheaval and dramatic change. The extraordinary developments of last week, in which the current very large Labour majority in Parliament brought about revolutions in abortion law and in assisted dying, are a warning that we are now in uncharted waters. It may possibly be that we have never had a government whose parliamentary forces are so radical. And the uncrowned queen of those forces is the Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, increasingly influential and remarkably effective in the Commons and in Whitehall. It is true that there has always been a role for disruptive and troublemaking men and women near the top of the Labour Party. In the Tony Blair years, a similar position was filled by the late John Prescott, a majestic steam-powered Dreadnought originating in the (now remote) days of real class war. Let nobody underestimate Lord Prescott's considerable influence on the government he served. But Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and the apparatus of New Labour kept him under control. In this case, it looks very much as if a confident and popular Ms Rayner has slipped free of any restraint by the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer. Her Employment Rights Bill, which is alarming businesses all over the country, would have been strangled at birth in the days of Blairism. The unions would have been told – rightly – that the public had grown heartily sick of their overmighty antics in the past, and did not want to see them given back the unrestrained power they had rightly lost. And while Sir Keir and his Chancellor Rachel Reeves must know this, they seem either powerless to act, or surprisingly untroubled by the danger of it. Speaking to The Mail on Sunday last week, Ms Reeves simply evaded the question of Ms Rayner's plans. When a successful businessman such as Sir James Dyson accuses you of being 'vindictive' and of 'waging a war on aspiration', you really ought to listen. It is on the success of such businessmen that any future economic growth must be based. Without that growth, where are the taxes to come from to pay for the advanced welfare state in which we live? So we must applaud the open letter to British businessmen sent out by Shadow Business Secretary Andrew Griffith, in which he does what Sir Keir and Ms Reeves will not do, and makes it plain just how dangerous Ms Rayner's plans are. He warns those business chiefs that they are being sleepwalked into disaster, that the Rayner Bill will fundamentally change the balance of power in workplaces, at huge cost. Coming after the idiocy of the National Insurance increase, this a grave threat to the jobs of trade union members, as well as to the economy as a whole. We can only hope that the Prime Minister and his Chancellor will listen and act, for the nation's sake as well as their own.