The government’s Climate Change Transformation Team’s plan to bring forward by 18 months the ban on fossil fuel heating systems in new builds has been slammed by Ramsey Commissioners.

The date prohibiting installation of fossil fuel systems would be August 1, 2023, instead of the original date of January 1, 2025.

A consultation is currently under way on the proposal.

Steve Kelly biggest concern was the effect it could have on first time buyers by pushing up property prices.

Rob Cowell thought the scheme itself was laudable but the target date was questionable.

Ffinlo Williams said the proposed new date was far too last minute for anyone to plan around it, especially if you were building your own house and had already spent a lot of money on architects’ fees for a house heated in the traditional way.

Luke Parker felt the team was ‘massively jumping the gun’.

‘We’ve had over a century of heating our homes with fossil fuels, whereas this new technology has not yet stood the test of time. It’s taking away people’s choices,’ he said.