Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help support (a) rural and (b) off-grid households that use heating oil in the context of the Warm Homes Plan; and what assessment she has made of the potential contribution of renewable liquid heating fuels for supporting those households to decarbonise affordably.

For most off-grid properties, decarbonising heat will involve installing a heat pump. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme grants offer £7,500 for heat pumps, and £5,000 for biomass boilers in specific rural cases.

The government recognises that renewable liquid fuels (RLF) could play a role in heating. We expect sustainable biomass, a limited resource, to be prioritised where there are fewer alternatives to decarbonisation. RLFs are also more expensive to use than other heating solutions. The government continues to review evidence on the affordability and availability of sustainable feedstocks for RLFs.