Chris Williamson says report is a ‘wake-up call to act’
Slowing rates of heat pump installations are putting the UK’s climate targets at risk and exposing the country to geopolitical shocks, the government has been told by its own climate watchdog.
The Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) annual report, published today, warned that the government’s annual 2025 plan for reducing carbon emissions had been less ambitious than the previous year’s strategy.
It said the plan reflected slower progress in decarbonising public sector buildings and reduced support for low-income homes to electrify heating and install insulation.
There is now a “significant gap” between the plan’s projected emissions reductions and the UK’s 2030 commitments under the Paris Agreement, which aim to reduce emissions by at least 68% compared to 1990 levels, the CCC said.
The report follows the spike in energy prices this year caused by the Iran conflict, the second major energy shock in the past four years following a similar rise in prices during the early stages of the Ukraine war.
Energy bills have increased almost four times more for households running gas boilers and petrol cars compared to those with heat pumps, and ten times more for rural homes running oil boilers and diesel vehicles, the CCC found.
But the number of heat pumps installed in homes last year grew by just 7%, a significant slowdown from the growth of 56% seen in 2024.
Around 56,000 heat pumps were installed in homes in 2025, which is one of the lowest market shares of heat pump installations in Europe.
The CCC urged the government to “urgently address” the gap in the market left by the closure of the ECO scheme, which has accounted for about a third of heat pump installations during the last three years.
It warned that without a replacement scheme, installations could “fall significantly” this year.
The committee also called on the government to reduce regulatory barriers to heat pump installations to make them easier to install, and to consider restricting the installation of fossil fuel boilers in public buildings.
RIBA president Chris Williamson said the report “could not have come at a more significant moment” as the UK enters its second heatwave of the year, with temperatures expected to reach 37 degrees in southern England today.
“With the last three years the hottest on record, we could be set for another record-breaking year - and this is a wake-up call to act. The Government cannot ignore the urgent need to push forward essential energy efficiency improvements to homes and public buildings, which are critical to protecting people’s health and wellbeing as well as reducing energy costs and cutting carbon emissions,” Williamson said.
The Institution of Civil Engineers’ director of policy and external affairs Sam Gould added that the report showed policymakers were “not moving fast enough on the areas that will make the biggest impact”.
“To continue making progress, we must speed up electrification across transport, homes and industry. This means making electricity cheaper, expanding access to EV charging, and scaling up heat pump installation. Low-carbon choices must become easy and cost-effective,” Gould said.
“Done right, this transition will strengthen energy security, help shield households from volatile fossil fuel prices, and keep the UK on track to meet net zero.
“The direction is clear; now we must deliver at the scale and speed required.”
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