The Prime Minister has controversially scrapped plans to force landlords to upgrade the energy efficiency of their properties, opting instead to encourage households to take such actions voluntarily.
Under the previous policy, starting in 2025, new tenancies would only be allowed for properties with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of C or higher. This requirement would have extended to existing tenancies from 2028. In a speech the Prime Minster brought forward from the original plan, Rishi Sunak confirmed that both of these mandates have now been cancelled.
Confirming the decision, Mr Sunak said that the government will continue to commit to financial support for energy efficiency measures but would not “force any household to do it.”
In a move that has stunned climate campaigners Sunak also extended the transition period for heat pumps for landlords and homeowners, allowing the switch only when changing a boiler and not until 2035. Gas boilers will not have to be immediately replaced to meet targets. Sunak emphasised the need to make heat pumps more affordable and introduced an exemption for some households. The boiler upgrade scheme will also see a 50% increase to £7,500.
Mr Sunak also confirmed the government has postponed the 2030 deadline for the purchase of diesel- and petrol-powered vehicles to 2035, aligning it with the EU deadline.
However, the commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2050 remains, with a promise of a more pragmatic and transparent approach to managing its impact on the public. He said:
“The risk here to those of us who care about reaching net zero, as I do, is simple: if we continue down this path, we risk losing the consent of the British people.
And the resulting backlash would not just be against specific policies but against the wider mission itself meaning we might never achieve our goal.
That’s why we have to do things differently.”
Ben Beadle, the chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), expressed support for energy-efficient properties but highlighted the damaging uncertainty surrounding energy efficiency policy, which has hindered the rental property supply.
Beadle urged the government to develop a comprehensive plan, including financial support and tax reform, to encourage energy efficiency measures within the rental market.
However, the decision to abandon EPC ratings for rented homes received criticism from Dan Wilson Craw, the deputy chief executive of Generation Rent. He argued that cancelling higher standards for rented homes worsens the cost-of-living crisis and harms renters’ health.
Baroness Parminter, Chair of the House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee, responded to the Net Zero Speech:
“The Prime Minister’s change of direction and delaying targets for EVs and heat pumps mean that the Government will not provide the leadership, certainty or consistency needed. He has chosen to kick the can down the road, rather than pick it up and put it in the recycling bin.
We welcome the incentive to encourage people to buy heat pumps by increasing the size of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. We need incentives in other policy areas like EVs, so our inquiry into Electric Vehicles will continue and our recommendations will take stock both of these disappointing developments today and the need to address barriers to their uptake.”
