Heat pumps needed at 'much faster rate' - watchdog

Air source heat pumps suck in outdoor air and pass it over tubes containing refrigerant fluids to produce heat

Clean energy such as heat pumps need to be installed in Scotland's homes "at a much faster rate", according to the financial watchdog Audit Scotland.

Its report said only about 5,000 heat pumps were installed in 2022, a long way short of the current target of about 25,000 a year.

The target is set to rise rapidly to 200,000 annually later in the decade.

Audit Scotland said ministers needed to produce a "clear delivery plan" to ensure the targets were met.

Homes are responsible for about 15% of Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from fossil fuel heating such as oil and gas boilers.

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Replacing them with zero emissions options is a vital component in Scotland's bid to be net zero by 2045.

That is the point at which we are removing the same amount of greenhouse gases as we are emitting and no longer adding to the total amount in the atmosphere.

Audit Scotland, the body responsible for making sure public money is well spent, has been examining the Scottish government's plans for decarbonising home heating, principally through air source heat pumps or district heating.

Heat pumps operate like a fridge in reverse by converting cold external air into heat while district networks generate hot water which is pumped around multiple homes where the heat is extracted into radiators.

The report said it would require the majority of households to change their heating systems and described the scale of the challenge as "huge" with several "risks to success".

Net Zero Secretary Mairi McAllan says plans to reduce emissions need to be ambitious as well as "realistic and pragmatic"

Net Zero Secretary Mairi McAllan told BBC Scotland News that she welcomed the report and would respond fully at a later stage.

But she said: "Ultimately tackling heat in buildings and decarbonising is one of the single most important interventions we need to make for emissions reduction.

"But equally the government is under no illusions about how much it goes to the heart of the way people live their lives and how it affects everyone across the country."

Ms McAllan said the plans needed to be ambitious as well as "realistic and pragmatic".

The Audit Scotland report said it had already taken two years for the Scottish government to build a team to deliver its strategy and that further delays to introducing legislation would risk missing important targets.

It recommends that ministers set out a "clear plan of action" to support the large scale change which is necessary.

The Scottish government has committed £1.8bn in the current parliamentary term to decarbonising home heating but estimates that a total of £33bn will be needed.

That figure is made up of public, business and individual household funding.

Fabrice Leveque, from environmental campaign group WWF Scotland, said the Audit Scotland report was a "wake-up call" and the transition away from fossil fuel heating needed to happen quickly.

He added: "The sooner we begin this transition, the sooner we can see homeowners enjoy lower energy bills and warmer homes, and Scotland can play its role in tackling climate change by ending a key source of our emissions."