UK Government announces end of fossil fuel heating systems in new houses from 2025

(Climate Action, 13 Mar 2019) The UK Government has announced plans to end fossil fuel heating systems in new houses from 2025.

The 2019 Spring Statement has announced plans to advance the decarbonisation of gas supplies to reduce dependence on burning natural gases in homes and businesses.

To ensure homes are better for the environment, they will introduce a Future Homes Standard by 2025, so that new build homes are future-proofed with low-carbon heating and world-leading levels of energy efficiency.

Last month, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) released a report which detailed how present UK housing was not equipped to deal with the effects of climate change. They recommended that by 2025, no new homes should connect to the gas grid.

A recent review by the Department of Business Energy and Industrial Strategy found that the transport industry was the largest sector contributing to emissions in the UK. This is lightly touched upon in the new statement, with the government saying they will launch a call for evidence on Offsetting Transport Emissions.

The Spring Statement also gave a mention to biodiversity, pledging to provide a review which will identify actions to enhance biodiversity and deliver economic prosperity.

Green MP Caroline Lucas took to Twitter to announce her frustration with the plans for another review.

External link

Climate Action, 13 Mar 2019: UK Government announces end of fossil fuel heating systems in new houses from 2025