Sir John Armitt, the Chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission, has voiced his concerns about the UK government’s “Powering Up Britain” plan.

Although he acknowledged that some progress has been made in certain areas, Armitt believes that there are still significant questions as to whether the interventions are adequate enough to drive change quickly.

Armitt said: “The extension of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme will give it more time to make an impact, but without a drop in upfront costs for consumers it is difficult to see how it will prompt the necessary uptick in heat pump installations.

“The lack of a revised spending commitment means it is hard to assess the contribution the scheme will make to the government’s own target of installing 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028.”

Armitt commended the intention to rebalance gas and electricity prices, which will help reduce the operating costs of low carbon technologies.

However, he emphasised that this should be achieved as soon as possible.

Sir John Armitt added: “We need to move from setting targets to delivering on the ground, making it easier for every household to make the greener choices necessary to meet our climate commitments.”