Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, for what reasons customers that use hydrotreated vegetable oil for heating and hot water in rural, off-grid homes are not able to benefit from the discounts of up to 80p per litre through government-supported obligation schemes, that are available to customers who use that fuel for vehicles, mobile machinery and aircraft.

The Government recognises that biofuels such as hydrotreated vegetable oil biodiesel may play a role in future off-gas-grid decarbonisation, particularly for properties that are not suitable for a heat pump.

However, further evidence is needed to consider what role these biofuels could play and to develop the policy framework which would support such a role.

The forthcoming Biomass Strategy will consider evidence on the likely supply and sustainability of mass feedstocks, including those used to produce biofuels, available to the UK, the total lifecycle emissions for different biomass uses, and the best uses of biomass across the economy to achieve the Government’s net zero target.