Jonny Marshall

Clean flexibility roadmap A roadmap setting out the government’s vision for a clean, flexible, consumer-focused electricity system.

Good to see the flexibility roadmap out today. Flex is key to a cheaper energy system, so great that Gov is committed to this. Especially big savings coming for those with big techs like EVs and heat pumps.

www.gov.uk/government/p...

Shame to see rising block tariffs suggested. A bad idea for poorer families that use lots of energy, but also not great for incentivising people to consume more electricity in electric cars or heat pumps

The challenge of energy affordability is very real, but rising block tariffs aren’t the answer. People on low incomes with poorly insulated homes or who need more energy for health reasons could see rising bills, while those with multiple homes or can install solar panels avoid paying a fair share

@resfoundation.bsky.social colleagues noted last year that extending Winter Fuel Payments to pensioners on Housing Benefit would target low incomes at a cost of £100m (& a HB - Pension Credit merger is planned longer-term).

Another £200m could extend WFPs to those on Attendance Allowance, DLA & PIP

Higher energy bills driving today's inflation figures, with changes in fuel costs behind nearly 90% of the year-on-year increase.

Policies that pay for environmental and social schemes (among other things) up a bit too but nowhere near as much

Turning up the heat • Resolution Foundation Decarbonising home heating is one of the knottiest parts of the net zero transition, with big implications on families’ finances and behaviour. This report examines progress so far and discusses what ...

Much much more in our report here www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications...

Doing so would really sharpen the incentive to install a heat pump – four fifths of households currently with gas boilers would save more than £300 per year.

Savings on this scale would make heat pumps a much more attractive option

This is because electricity is expensive. There are lots of way to intervene here – but we think the best solution (for households and for the state balance sheet) is to move the cost of policies from electricity unit charges to gas

In fact, around two-in-three will face higher bills.

For most, this won’t be a big change, but as it stands there is very little incentive for people to say goodbye to their boilers.

Combining subsidy and regulation is, in our view, the best bet for a quicker and more even uptake.

This is basically the playbook for electric cars. But unlike electric cars, people switching to heat pumps won’t be rewarded by cheaper running costs

And regulation on new homes is also long overdue.

It is remarkable that in 2024 only a small fraction of new builds were fitted with heat pumps – close to three-in-five are still being connected to the gas grid

So time for something stronger. Reconfirming the ‘ban’ on fitting new gas boilers would make sure that all property owners (including landlords) face up to change – with those on lower incomes protected from extra costs through additional subsidy

The Government is talking up an ‘incentive-led’ approach, but without regulation the clean heating transition won’t happen in the private rented sector

We can means test extra support to help poorer families, but the elephant in the room (shown in this chart) is tenure. Most lower income households rent their homes, and landlords have shown little interest in installing low carbon heating

So, what can we do about it?

It’s inevitable that more subsidy is needed, but we argue that extra money should target the distribution of uptake, as well as pace.

This means they just aren’t affordable for poorer families. And expectations of cost reductions have been widely pared back, so they probably won’t be for a while.

First, we need to acknowledge that costs aren’t coming down as hoped. Even after big grants and tax cuts, unsubsidised installation prices have barely fallen

Heat pumps are expected to heat most homes by mid-century. This won’t happen if these trends don’t start to change

It’s well known that the heat pump rollout is going slowly, but it is remarkable how unbalanced it is. Using postcode-level installation data we can see that richer and more rural parts of the country dominate

Turning up the heat • Resolution Foundation Decarbonising home heating is one of the knottiest parts of the net zero transition, with big implications on families’ finances and behaviour. This report examines progress so far and discusses what ...

🚨 🚨 🚨 New @resfoundation.bsky.social research out today on decarbonising home heating, looking at what shape policy should take so that poorer households can be more involved 🧵
www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications...

New @resfoundation.bsky.social research out this morning from @emilyfry.bsky.social, @camronaref.bsky.social and I which uses the first ever comprehensive analysis of public service use across the income distribution to show how we can make public services better for low-to-middle income families.

Event for ''Turning up the heatt'' on heat pumps event - at the Resolution Foundation office, Thursday 10th April 9.30am

The roll-out of heat pumps as part of the net zero transition has been slow.

Join us tomorrow to discuss how policy can encourage greater take-up, and ensure ongoing cash savings for consumers.

Sign-up now ➡️ buff.ly/X41yJC6

It's also widely reported that poorer places are being left behind when it comes to public EV chargers

But when we look at on-street chargers (the most important type for widespread EV uptake) we can see that this just isn't true

Paid in full • Resolution Foundation As we move into the depths of winter, energy costs remain close to the top of the political agenda. But one vulnerable group – the 4 million UK households who pay for energy via pre-payment meters (PP...

More in our note here www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications...

There is no real reason why PPM customers could not be given cheaper energy rates – tariffs were changed in the energy crisis and they could be again 6/

Which explains why disconnections and debt (that continues to increase even if PPM customers don’t use any energy) are unsustainably high 5/

This is just not affordable, especially with the concentration of pre-payment meters among poorer households. 1-in-5 of the poorest families pay for energy via PPMs compared with just 1.5% of the richest 4/

A note from @resfoundation.bsky.social over the Christmas break showed the real stress these families will be in 3/
bsky.app/profile/resf...

Ending the winter fuel payment for all pensioners is still the main issue dominating the news, but there is a large chunk of the population much more at risk… the ~4 million families on pre-payment energy meters 2/

UK weather: Freezing temperatures across country as floods remains Weather warnings for snow and ice have been issued across many parts of the UK.

It’s freezing cold again, meaning real stress for most vulnerable trying to keep warm at home 1/
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...