Scottish government drops heat pumps bill for second time

The Scottish government has dropped legislation for greener heating systems in homes and businesses for the second time this year.

A heat in buildings bill aimed at driving the switch from the likes of gas boilers to heat pumps was originally drawn up by former Green minister Patrick Harvie.

That bill was torn up earlier this year amid concerns it would increase fuel poverty but ministers promised to bring forward alternative proposals.

Now that too has been scrapped, with Housing Secretary Mairi McAllan saying she wanted to see "crucial detail" in the UK government's forthcoming warm homes plan before taking a bill through parliament.

The issue has instead been pushed back beyond next year's Holyrood election.

Harvie said the latest delay was a "pathetic capitulation" and an "act of climate surrender".

Environmental groups also hit out, with Friends of the Earth calling it a "cowardly decision" and WWF Scotland saying it was a "major setback".

The proposals were a key part of the deal between the SNP and Scottish Greens following the 2021 election.

The legislation drawn up by Harvie would have required gas boilers to be replaced with alternative systems, such as electric heat pumps, within a set timeframe after the sale of a property.

The production of heat accounts for more than half of Scotland's energy demands and is the largest contributor to the country's carbon emissions.

But the legislation was torn up in March 2025 after the partnership government broke up, with Net Zero Secretary Gillian Martin saying it would "make people poorer".

A revised plan was then announced the following month. It retained a target to decarbonise buildings by 2045 but did not have a legal requirement on homeowners or businesses to force its delivery.

Ministers acknowledged that consumers had to pay higher up-front costs for green heating systems and said the bill would "move away from penalising individuals and instead commit to collective action".

However, that too has now been put on hold, with McAllan telling MSPs there would not be time to pass complex legislation into law before parliament breaks up in March.

She reiterated the 2045 target for decarbonising how homes are heated "in a way that does not worsen fuel poverty".

But she said "essential clarity" was needed from the UK government, blaming "repeated delays" to its warm homes plan and proposals to cut fuel bills.

She said: "It is perverse that Scottish ministers should be in the dark about plans related to Scotland's own energy resources."

Mairi McAllan sought to blame the UK government for the delay to the plans

A draft bill has been published to provide an idea on future plans, which McAllan said would be brought forward as early as possible after the election if the SNP is returned to power.

It includes a goal of "replacing direct-emission heating systems in all Scottish buildings - as far as reasonably practicable - by 2045".

Harvie said the delay was "a complete capitulation to the anti-environment lobby".

He said: "This bill was on track to be introduced well over a year ago and it's pathetic for the SNP to blame others for their own decision to stall it.

"SNP ministers are choosing failure, and they are locking people into high fossil fuel prices for years to come."

Other opposition parties were also critical of the announcement, with the Conservatives saying it was "an incredibly embarrassing day" for the government.

And Labour said it was "beyond farcical" to blame a UK government that had been in post for 18 months when homeowners and industry had been waiting five years for clarity on the Scottish plans.

The government recently published a climate change plan aimed at reaching "net zero" carbon emissions by 2045, which included changes to heating systems.

Ministers have also announced extra grants for homeowners of up to £7,500 - or up to £9,000 for those in rural or remote island areas - as an incentive to connect to local heat networks.

But Friends of the Earth Scotland said the delay was the latest in a "litany of climate rollbacks under John Swinney", including the dropping of plans to cut car use.

Campaigner Alex Lee said it was a "cowardly choice by the Scottish government which condemns people to cold homes, high bills and ill health for even longer".

Claire Daly, head of policy and advocacy at WWF Scotland, added: "As temperatures fall and winter sets in, confirmation that the heat in buildings bill is being dropped in this parliament is a major setback for Scotland's climate and fuel poverty ambitions."