Taking heat pumps to Holyrood
18th September 2025
UK: Working heat pumps were recently placed before the Scottish parliament to raise awareness of the technology and its potential role in decarbonising Scotland’s heating.
The Hear, See and Feel a Heat Pump event was organised by the Heat Pump Association (HPA), manufacturers Mitsubishi Electric and NIBE, and supported by the MCS Foundation and Nesta.
It provided the opportunity to meet with MSPs and representatives from five different parties, various party spokespersons on net zero, energy and climate, as well as those who sit on the Net Zero, Energy and Transport committee, and the Local Government, Housing and Planning committee.
MSPs and stakeholders had the opportunity to see both air-to-water and ground-source heat pumps in action, hear from industry and technical experts who were on hand to answer their important questions, and experience first-hand how heat pumps provide reliable low-carbon heat.
Commenting on the event, Olivia Smalley, head of policy and communications at the HPA said: “This event was a brilliant opportunity to showcase heat pumps directly to MSPs, particularly in light of the highly anticipated publication of the refreshed Heat in Buildings Bill. We were able to highlight the urgent need for policy certainty, and evidence the sector’s ambition to scale up should the bill be delivered.”
Achilleas Georgiou, Mitsubishi Electric’s public affairs and communications consultant, said: “It’s vital that policymakers can see for themselves how proven, efficient, low-carbon technologies like heat pumps can help decarbonise Scotland’s homes.
“As we look towards the upcoming Heat in Buildings Bill, as a manufacturer of heat pumps in Scotland, we want to work closely with government and industry partners to ensure heat pumps play a central role in delivering net zero, while giving households and businesses the confidence to make the switch to cleaner heating.”
MCS Foundation chief executive Garry Felgate recognised that Scotland was leading Britain when it comes to heat pump uptake but it needed to increase significantly to meet climate targets. “We need an ambitious Heat in Buildings Bill to deliver that by setting out a clear path to phase out fossil fuel heating from 2035,” he said.
