McAllan describes Warm Homes Plan ‘missed opportunity’ as UK unveils £15bn retrofit programme

Billed as the largest home upgrade programme in British history, the £15 billion five‑year package aims to retrofit up to five million homes with solar panels, heat pumps, batteries and insulation, with the ambition of lifting one million households out of fuel poverty by 2030.

Key measures include low and zero‑interest loans for households to install solar panels, heat pumps and battery storage; £7,500 heat‑pump grants through an extended Boiler Upgrade Scheme to 2029/30; £600 million additional support for low‑income households, covering the full cost of solar and battery installations; new protections for renters requiring landlords to invest in energy‑saving upgrades; and universal access to retrofit finance regardless of income.

Màiri McAllan said the plan “does not contain the promised detail” on long‑term electricity price reform and warned that household bills “remain around £190 higher than at the time of the general election”. She reiterated Scotland’s call for a targeted social tariff, jointly developed with industry and consumer groups, which she said could cut annual bills for 660,000 Scottish households by an average of £700.

The housing secretary added: “The Scottish Government’s draft 2026-27 Budget allocates more than £330m to help install clean heat and energy efficiency measures in homes and buildings, and we expect our schemes to support an estimated 20,000 households make improvements.

“Between now and 2030, we are allocating £1.3bn to heat in buildings - around 60% of this will be targeted at those most at risk of fuel poverty so that they live in warmer, more affordable to heat homes. 

“Our own New Build Heat Standard already ensures that all new homes granted a building warrant since April 2024 have clean heat installed, and that no more homes will be built with polluting systems.”  

The UK Government said the plan will support a “rooftop revolution”, aiming to triple the number of homes with solar PV. Ministers estimate that a typical three‑bed semi installing solar, a heat pump and battery storage could save around £500 a year on bills, though external estimates from Nesta and the MCS Foundation suggest savings could exceed £1,000.

The plan has been broadly welcomed across the energy, finance and labour sectors. Energy UK chief executive Dhara Vyas said the long‑term funding commitment provides vital certainty for investors, while Electrify Britain’s Camilla Born praised the ambition but stressed the need for rapid delivery.

Prime minister Keir Starmer said: “A warm home shouldn’t be a privilege, it should be a basic guarantee for every family in Britain. Today’s plan marks a turning point. It will help to slash energy costs and lift up to a million people out of fuel poverty.

“This is a government bearing down on the cost-of-living crisis. By driving bills down for good and upgrading millions of homes, we’re giving people the security and the fair shot they need to get on in life.”

Energy secretary Ed Miliband said: “It is a scandal that millions of people in our country do not have the security of a home that is warm, affordable and safe.

“With this investment, we embark on a national project to turn the tide - waging war on fuel poverty and taking another step forward in tackling the affordability crisis for families throughout Britain.”