The delayed publication of the UK government’s Warm Homes Plan (WHP) has been blamed for Scotland’s home heating legislation being pushed back until after next spring’s Holyrood elections.
Scottish Housing Secretary Màiri McAllan confirmed on 18 November that the legislation will not be introduced in the Holyrood parliament’s current session. The bill could not be published, she said, because the delay to the WHP meant there is lack of clarity on the cost of electricity bills. ‘Repeated’ delays to the WHP had left ‘key questions unanswered’, she added.
The Scottish government has published draft legislation, which has been renamed the Buildings (Heating and Energy Performance) and Heat Networks (Scotland) Bill, which McAllan said will be brought forward in the next parliament, subject to the outcome of May’s elections.
Morag Watson, director of onshore at Scottish Renewables, said the delayed publication of the bill was ‘deeply disappointing’.
McAllan also announced additional grants, from December, for Scottish homeowners of up to £7,500, increasing to £9,000 for those in island and remote rural areas, to incentivise connections to local heat networks.
