I write to you as my local MP because, as a heating engineer in your constituency, I am very concerned the government may be planning to cut VAT on gas and electricity bills in the upcoming Budget but could overlook my customers who are on oil heating.

If this speculation is true, it is part of a worrying trend of ignoring the needs of rural households when it comes to home heating. I hope you will support me by asking the government how they intend to help oil heated homes.

I work in rural areas in your constituency and I know from speaking with my customers that they are very keen to play their part and reduce their carbon emissions, but there are currently no realistic solutions available to them. The government was due to publish its Warm Homes Plan by the end of October which was expected to set out proposals for how households could transition onto greener heating system. However, it was delayed leaving rural households in limbo.

I understand the Government’s current policy is to incentivise households to switch to heat pumps. However, recent government demonstration projects have shown that for rural homes this could mean upfront costs in excess of £20,000. That’s because rural homes tend to be older and in need of more work to allow a heat pump to run efficiently. This means many households who claim the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) grant would still have to pay thousands more on top.

If the government plans to overlook oil heated homes for a VAT discount on energy bills, because they cannot afford the upfront cost to transition to a heat pump, this is unfair and discriminatory. Worst of all, it’s the wealthiest households that can afford the high upfront cost of a heat pump who will benefit most from any cuts to electricity bills.

I know that most off-gas grid households would welcome the opportunity to reduce their carbon emissions if affordable solutions were available. Many would like to switch now to a low carbon renewable liquid fuel such as Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) as this can significantly reduce emissions with minimal cost and disruption. This is because it only requires changing the fuel without the need to remove the boiler or the tank. The liquid fuel heating industry has calculated that if a 20% blend of HVO was introduced, it would have the same effect as installing 347,372 low temperature heat pumps. Later conversion to 100% HVO would reduce the carbon emissions from an oil heated home by 87%.

I am aware the liquid fuel heating industry has, on multiple occasions, provided substantial evidence that there is plenty of this fuel available. Yet the government still says that more research is needed. I would like to understand from the government what steps they are taking to gather the evidence it feels it needs. I would be grateful if you could contact the Minister, Martin McCluskey, on my behalf to ask him this question and urge him to support renewable liquid fuels for oil heated households.

I also understand heating oil is currently exempt from excise duty but a legislative anomaly means renewable heating fuels would face an additional 10 pence per litre in duty. The government could resolve this inconsistency by removing the duty on renewable heating fuel, which would have no impact on Treasury income. I fully support this approach. This solution has significant rural support, and I feel strongly that the government should adopt it. Again, I would urge you to ask the Minister if he has considered making this change.

The Scottish and Irish governments have recognised that, alongside heat pumps, bioenergy will have a role in decarbonising heating, and I think we should take a similar approach.

I look forward to your response and thank you for your support on this matter.

Yours Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR ADDRESS]