Daikin's commercial manager – heating & renewables Iain Bevan, was referring to reports today that the Prime Minister is expected to reveal tougher targets on greenhouse gas emissions this week. The plan is to cut carbon dioxide by 78% by 2035.

Mr Bevan said: “15% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions come from our homes as a result of oil and gas usage. If we’re to meet the government’s new 2035 target, the task of decarbonising domestic heating is an urgent one.

“Heat pumps are a well-established technology that can be immediately and efficiently implemented across the UK to substantially reduce carbon emissions. And, because heat pumps are so efficient, they produce 45% fewer carbon emissions compared to a gas boiler, and 59% fewer than an oil boiler – a reduction of up to 43.5 tonnes of carbon emissions per home over the system’s lifetime.

“We must be mindful though that there is a significant job still to do in supporting professionals within the sector to meet the demands of scaling up the installation of renewable heating systems. For the heat pump market alone, we estimate around 17,000 new installers are required to meet the expected demand within the next 10 years, so providing high quality training opportunities is essential.

“At Daikin we are already providing top quality training that is available for free as part of the Sustainable Home Network. This will play a significant role in developing a highly-skilled workforce that will be vital in supporting the Government’s plans to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions.”