The national drive for Britons to switch from traditional gas boilers to expensive heat pumps has sparked a fresh backlash from MPs and an industry leader. Ahead of a vote and potential rebellion from Conservative MPs, the Government is pressing ahead with its Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM) policy, which is due to come into force in 2024.
Mike Foster, CEO of Energy and Utilities Alliance (EUA), criticised the speed of plans to encourage Britons to replace their gas boilers, saying it would pass further costs onto consumers. He told Express.co.uk: “For the past year the boiler manufacturers have warned the Government about the impact their plans would have. They met with ministers.
“They showed them and officials their future business plans. They have invested in heat pump technologies and want to sell them but consumer demand simply isn’t there. At £13,000 a time compared to swapping a boiler for around £2,000, we understand why.”
Dame Andrea Jenkyns echoed the EUA’s criticism with a plea for the Government to completely axe its “ludicrous” net zero approach. The MP for Morley and Outwood in West Yorkshire told Express.co.uk: “It is ludicrous to pile more financial pressure on both businesses and the consumer for the utopian quest for net zero. Let’s ditch net zero and let the British taxpayers decide how they want to heat their homes.”
READ MORE: Households could be slapped with £120 ‘boiler tax’ after heat pump rollout
Mr Foster went on to argue the CHMM plan would result in the price of boilers increasing by around £100, which amounted to applying what he described as a “boiler tax” by stealth on the British public.
He said: “The Government, which has said people don’t have to fit a heat pump, is slyly introducing this levy or tax that makes gas boilers more expensive to buy.
“When the Prime Minister issued his net zero re-set last September, he didn’t tell voters that his ministers were planning a boiler tax to penalise those households that replaced or modernised their boilers. The CHMM places an obligation on UK boiler manufacturers to sell a set number of heat pumps each year, regardless of whether consumers want them.
“They are fined for failing to meet the Whitehall-set target. These fines are then passed onto consumers who continue to buy boilers. Failure to meet the target incurs a £3,000 fine for every heat pump sale missed.”
Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg warned his party would be shooting itself in the foot by putting fresh “punishing” costs onto voters and would pay the price politically.
The Tory Brexiteer MP for North East Somerset told Express.co.uk: “Reducing emissions requires affordable technology. No government will deserve to win elections by putting punishing costs on to the electorate. It would be both politically and economically damaging.
“Cheap energy is essential for economic growth and the green ideology has already reduced the UK’s prosperity to no benefit as our share of emissions is tiny. In recent years the US has had stronger growth mainly because of its lower energy cost and we must not condemn ourselves to being cold and poor.”
COMMENT: The march to net zero is utter lunacy, warns Ben Habib
Marco Longhi, who along with Dame Andrea and Sir Jacob is part of the Net Zero Scrutiny Group of backbench MPs, argued a “net zero dogma” should not be “pushed through irrespective of consequences”. The MP for Dudley North told Express.co.uk: “It’s clear that there are concerns within the boiler manufacturing industry regarding the Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM) policy.
“While the industry recognises the importance of transitioning to heat pumps for a sustainable future, there’s a very valid point, that I and many colleagues have been making about the negative impact on manufacturers and the financial burden it may place on consumers.
“It is clear that boiler manufacturers have actively engaged with the Government, sharing their concerns and investment in heat pump technologies. However, they emphasise that consumer demand for heat pumps currently falls short, mainly due to the significant cost difference compared to traditional boilers. This has been clear from the outset.
“Balancing the transition to cleaner technologies with the economic feasibility for both manufacturers and consumers is crucial. A collaborative approach involving policymakers, industry representatives, and consumers could help address these concerns and ensure a smoother transition to more sustainable heating solutions – but ultimately it is about cost and consumer choice, it should not be about a net zero dogma pushed through irrespective of consequences.”
Ben Habib, deputy leader of Reform UK, who was this week unveiled as the party’s candidate in the upcoming Wellingborough by-election, argued the delay by the Prime Minister from 2030 to 2035 to ban gas boilers and internal combustion engines was a red herring.
He told Express.co.uk: “The biggest driver of inflation in the economy is the march to Net Zero and its associated regulatory and legal requirements. No one can object to the conservation of energy but the drive to Net Zero is the economic emasculation of the British economy. Utter lunacy.”
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero denied any suggestions of a so-called “boiler tax” being imposed on Britons and said firms should not be imposing further costs on consumers.
A spokesman told Express.co.uk: “We are not imposing a boiler tax and any suggestion otherwise is completely inaccurate. We have also not required any increase to the price of gas boilers, and firms should not be imposing further costs on consumers.
“Targets are realistic and fully achievable, providing industry with flexible options to support our ambition to make heat pumps easy and affordable to install.
“We’ve also made for it easier to get a heat pump by increasing the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant by 50 percent to £7,500 – tripling applications in the week after it was rolled out.”
