But have we been sitting on the middle way, for some time, and not known it?

Last week, the findings of a hybrid heat pump study were published. The research, based in the Energy House Lab at Salford University, produced some conclusions that should make policymakers sit up. It poured a huge dollop of economic realism into the debate around domestic heat decarbonisation. Here are some key findings:-

• The heat pump delivered an average of 94 per cent of the annual space heating demand.
• The combi-boiler delivered the hot water requirements, topping up the heat on cold days.
• No changes needed to radiators.
• It saved nearly 80 per cent of the carbon emitted compared to a gas boiler, at a fraction of the cost to install.
• Annual heating bills were lower than that of a gas boiler (which is already lower than a full heat pump solution).
• Quick install, with customer back up and running within a day.
• Combined with Imperial College study, peak electricity requirement down 30 per cent compared to a full heat pump solution and additional electrification costs reduced by more than 50 per cent compared to full electrification.

Now there is a further argument that the reduced gas requirement of a hybrid is more likely to be met by decarbonised gases, it’s a fair point. Is it a solution for every home, well that misses the point. It is a solution for some homes; heat pump only will be a solution for others and close to industrial clusters, I suspect hydrogen will be a solution too. The whole point of the middle way is that it avoids one-size fits all and hybrids might turn out to be the safe option that Ovid would have written about had he been alive today.