Scottish Government's Heat in Buildings Bill

During yesterday's Cost of Living Debate at the Scottish Parliament, Gillian Martin MSP, Acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy, announced she will only publish the Scottish Government's Heat in Buildings Bill when she 'can be satisfied that the interventions in it will decrease fuel poverty at the same time as they decarbonise houses.'

Responding to this announcement, Claire Mack, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables, said:

“In Scotland we have made strong progress on removing emissions from electricity. The next stage of our clean power journey, and the stage which will ultimately drive the step change required to meet our more challenging climate targets, is to deliver a way of heating our homes and businesses which can make best use of the clean power we are producing.

“That is complex to design and deliver within an energy system which has a number of challenges on costs and infrastructure. Bold thinking is now required as to what future policy will do differently to positively support the joint aims of delivering clean heat solutions and tackling fuel poverty in Scotland.

“The Scottish Government must swiftly outline its future action plan by working closely with the UK Government, regulators and industry to design credible pathways for energy efficiency and the delivery of clean heat. This should prioritise the role of cost-effective, city-wide heat networks and ensure all funding schemes are easy to navigate for consumers and suppliers.”

Ends

Notes to editors

• More information on yesterday's Cost of Living debate is available on the Scottish Parliament website.
• Free to use images of Claire Mack available via this link.