SNP energy scheme six times more expensive than more successful English scheme

Scottish Liberal Democrat Willie Rennie MSP has today said that the SNP are “anything but efficient” as he revealed that the costs to run their flagship home energy scheme are six times higher than the equivalent scheme in England and Wales, despite the number of completed installations having stalled.

Home Energy Scotland (HES) is the Scottish Government’s flagship scheme for helping households install energy-saving home improvements, including heat pumps.

The comparative scheme in England & Wales is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS).

New figures obtained from the Scottish Government show that:

• In 2024-25, HES was six times more expensive than the BUS per completed installation, costing £3,267.05 in advice and administration per customer, compared to £527.41 for the scheme in England and Wales.
• In each of the last three financial years, the HES scheme has been more expensive to run than the BUS.
• Despite the higher costs of HES, the number of completed installations is stalling, with almost 2,000 fewer installations being completed in 2024-25 compared to 2023-24.
• This contrasts with the situation in England and Wales, where the number of installations being completed year-on-year has more than doubled since 2022.

Last year, leading heat pump maker Aira warned that problems with the Scottish Government scheme were the “number one barrier” to heat pump uptake in Scotland.

Willie Rennie has repeatedly raised issues experienced by those trying to access the scheme, including complicated application forms, as well as delays to both the processing of applications and payments to the companies making the installations.

Willie Rennie said:

“The SNP government’s energy efficiency scheme is anything but efficient in its administration and execution.

“It makes no sense whatsoever for the scheme to be six times more expensive than England’s to run, while failing to ramp up the number of heat pump installations.

“Installing more energy efficient heating systems is a win-win for driving down emissions and supporting people with household bills. But so far, the SNP have made no serious effort to do so, offering only barriers, delays and total inefficiency. Their chaotic mishandling of otherwise positive initiatives is holding Scotland back.

“Companies tell me that they are losing orders because of the overbearing bureaucracy of the scheme. Now it is clear that taxpayers are also paying the price for the government’s lack of focus and inability to fix this problem.

“From rolling out a nationwide insulation programme to harnessing the full potential of Scottish renewables, my party has a realistic plan to turn things around.

“Every vote for the Scottish Liberal Democrats next year will be a vote to end SNP failures, support everyone with the cost of living and drive down emissions.”