THE government has said it “does not recognise” a trade body’s figures suggesting thousands of oil-heated homes in Dorset are not ready for a heat pump.

As previously reported, trade association Oftec said there were 18,000 homes in the county that are off the gas grid – and that only 20 per cent were ready for a heat pump.

It said rural home owners face the “highest cost and worst outcomes” from the government’s proposals to replace the installation of oil-fired boilers with more environmentally-friendly heat pumps. Many homes would require "expensive and disruptive " work to make them energy efficient first.

Three-quarters of installers surveyed said they would prefer the government to focus on renewable liquid fuels, such as Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), for off-grid homes.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “We do not recognise these figures as our own evidence shows around 80 per cent of oil heated homes can accommodate a heat pump without expensive extra building works.

“Longer-term, improving energy efficiency is vital to keeping energy costs down. That is why we are investing over £6billion to retrofit homes across the country, including schemes for oil-heated homes and those living off the gas grid.

“We are also incentivising millions of people to help get heat pumps by the end of the decade by slashing the price of installation by up to £5,000 and cutting VAT to zero per cent.”