Housing: Solar Power
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Rooftop solar for new builds to save people money, published on 6 June 2025, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of these measures on the time it will take to build a new home.
Answered by Samantha Dixon
As part of the consultation on the Future Homes Standard, the proposed net zero-ready standard for new build homes, we published a consultation-stage impact assessment estimating the costs and wider impacts of the proposals, including rooftop solar. In developing this assessment, we worked with specialist energy and construction cost consultants to gather evidence on typical capital costs of installing solar panels on different house types, and how these costs are expected to change over the course of the policy. Consultees were invited to offer their views on this assessment.
On build time, any impact on new homes will vary by site circumstances and design. Through the consultation process, we sought views on implementation, including the length of the transitional period for industry to adopt the new standards. This transitional period will provide time for industry to adapt and prepare, minimising any disruption to housebuilding.
We are carefully considering the response to the consultation. We intend to publish the Future Homes Standard this Autumn, and will publish an updated impact assessment alongside it.
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