Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of (a) the proportion of heat pumps installed in the UK that have been manufactured in the UK in each of (i) 2020, (ii) 2021 and (iii) 2022 and (b) in each case, the proportion that contain microchips manufactured in China.
Answered by Graham Stuart
In 2020, the Government published research that showed around 30 per cent of the heat pumps installed domestically were manufactured in the UK. This research did not consider the proportion of those heat pumps that contain microchips manufactured in China.
Industry data shows that manufacturers from several different countries supply electronic circuit boards and semiconductors to the UK consumer appliance market. The supply chain is not reliant on manufacturers from any one country.
The Government does not hold the above information for 2021 and 2022.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the number and proportion of homes that are not suited to heat pump installation; and what steps his Department is taking to (a) support and (b) provide heating alternatives to those homes to improve their energy efficiency.
Answered by Graham Stuart
An estimated 90 per cent of British homes have sufficient energy efficiency and electrical connections to be heated with a low temperature heat pump (operating with a flow temperature at 45°C). Other considerations, such as having sufficient space for the outdoor unit and compliance with planning requirements, must also be considered. For buildings that are not suitable for a low temperature heat pump, alternative low carbon heating technologies, including biomass and high temperature heat pumps (with flow temperatures above 45°C), are available. Government policy supports the installation of these technologies where appropriate.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many Low Carbon Heating Technician apprenticeship places there (a) were in 2022 and (b) are in 2023.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Low Carbon Heating Technician apprenticeship is in development. It is anticipated that this apprenticeship will be ready for delivery by September 2023.
An alternative option for apprentices looking to enter the heating sector is the Plumbing and Domestic Heating Technician apprenticeship. 3,780 individuals started this apprenticeship in the 2021/2022 academic year. 2,400 individuals started this apprenticeship in the first two quarters of the 2022/2023 academic year (August - January). Data regarding apprenticeships is published by the Department for Education.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when his Department plans to publish performance data from the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Interim performance data from the Government-funded Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project was published by the Energy Systems Catapult in March 2023 and is available to download from their website at https://es.catapult.org.uk/news/heat-pumps-shown-to-be-three-times-more-efficient-than-gas-boilers/.
The Government expects the final performance data to be published after the project concludes, in summer 2024.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether it remains his Department's target to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028; and what recent estimate he has made of the number of heat pumps that have been installed in (a) total and (b) the last 12 months.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government's target remains to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028 and it is putting in place an ambitious package of policies to achieve this.
From 2008 to the end of March 2023, the Microgeneration Certification Scheme Installations Database shows that 187,651 heat pump installations were registered. The number of heat pump installations in the 12 months to the end of March 2023 was 28,018. However, heat pumps installed without Government funding support and those in new buildings are not typically recorded in the database, with industry sources suggesting installations in new homes could make up a significant proportion of overall heat pump deployment.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the affordability of replacing existing household gas, alternative fuel or electric heating systems with air source heat pumps.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government is providing funding through the ‘Help to Heat’ schemes, including the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides £5,000 grants for an air-source heat pump, in addition to the 0% rate of VAT on this technology.
These schemes are part of a comprehensive package to grow the heat pump market and work with industry to reduce costs to consumers, which also includes targeted regulation and steps to support supply chains, such as the Heat Training Grant for installers and Heat Pump Manufacturing Investment Accelerator Competition. Further details are in Powering Up Britain (2023) and the Heat and Buildings Strategy (2021).
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many training places were available on training courses for heating engineers to learn to install heat pumps in (a) 2020, (b) 2021 and (c) 2022.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Training providers are not required to report to Government when they offer heat pump training. Industry groups are confident there is enough training capacity to meet demand for heat pump upskilling as heat pump deployment increases to meet the target of 600,000 installations per year by 2028.
Since 2020, the Government has provided funding to support nearly 9,000 training opportunities for low carbon heating. In March 2023, the Government announced a further £5m Heat Training Grant to support training relevant to heat pumps and heat networks. This funding is expected to support 10,000 training opportunities up to 2025.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to take steps to help increase the number of training places available for heating engineers to learn to install heat pumps.
Answered by Graham Stuart
On March 2nd 2023, the Government announced a £5m Heat Training Grant to support trainees in England undertaking training relevant to heat pumps and heat networks. This is expected to support 10,000 training opportunities up to 2025.
The training grant comes in addition to the £15m the Government has already committed since 2020 to develop skills in the energy efficiency and low carbon heating sectors.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what information his Department holds on how many hybrid heating systems were sold in each of the last three years.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government does not hold information on the number of hybrid heat pumps sold in each of the last three years.
However, according to Delta EE’s report ‘UK Heating market report 2021’, 1,400 hybrids were sold in the UK in 2021.