Skip to content

Government & PolicyDeveloping

Energy department told to find over £2bn in savings for defence spending

By

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets across the spectrum.

3 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

The Guardian, the Financial Times and Breitbart report that the energy department has been asked to find more than £2bn in savings from its budget to help pay for higher defence spending. According to sources cited by the Guardian, part of those savings would come from the boiler upgrade scheme for heat pumps, which offers grants of up to £9,000; the scheme would not be abolished, but hundreds of millions of pounds would be cut from its £2.7bn budget. The Financial Times reports industry backlash against the plan, and the Guardian says critics warn the cut would damage the British heat pump industry.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. The energy department has been ordered to find more than £2bn in savings from its budget to help pay for higher defence spending.

    Reported byLeft1Center1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    Financial Times
    Far Right
    Breitbart News

  2. Ministers plan to cut funds for the boiler upgrade scheme for heat pumps as part of those savings, according to sources cited by the Guardian.

    Reported byLeft1Center1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    Financial Times
    Far Right
    Breitbart News

  3. The scheme's £2.7bn annual budget is set to be cut by hundreds of millions of pounds rather than abolished, according to sources cited by the Guardian.

    Reported byLeft1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Far Right
    Breitbart News

  4. Treasury officials have long considered the scheme a subsidy used mainly by middle-class or higher-earning households, according to the Guardian.

    Reported byLeft1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Far Right
    Breitbart News

  5. Critics say cutting the scheme would damage the British heat pump industry.

    Reported byLeft1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    Financial Times

What is contested

Where accounts differ

Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.

  • The heat pump scheme has helped households install heat pumps in large numbers.

    The Guardian says tens of thousands of households have installed heat pumps under the scheme; Breitbart cites a figure of 80,000 installations partly paid for by the scheme.

How each side tells it

Compare views

All three outlets report that the energy department must find over £2bn in savings, with heat pump subsidies at risk. Left and center stress the plan and its sources or industry reaction, while the right casts it as Net Zero spending being sacrificed for arms.

  • the left

    1 outlet

    The Guardian headline leads with ministers preparing to slash heat pump subsidies to fund defence spending, presented as an exclusive based on sources.

    Ministers preparing to Loaded verb“slash”Slash suggests deep cuts, while the reported change is a reduction of hundreds of millions from a budget that is not being abolished.More neutral: cutDisagree with this highlight? heat pump subsidies to fund defence spending
    The GuardianLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The FT headline frames the event as a Labour plan that sparks industry backlash, with the defence drive appearing as background in the description.

    Labour plan to cut funds from heat pump scheme sparks industry backlash
    Financial TimesCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    1 outlet

    The only right-side article is from Far Right Breitbart, whose headline casts it as Net Zero spending cut to boost defence, citing a report rather than officials.

    UK to Slash 'Net Zero' Spending to Boost Defence: Report
    Breitbart NewsFar RightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left1

    slash

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right1

    Westminster-favourite

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    slashMore neutral: cut

    Slash suggests deep cuts, while the reported change is a reduction of hundreds of millions from a budget that is not being abolished.

    Ministers preparing to slash heat pump subsidies to fund defence spending

    Used byThe Guardian (Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    Westminster-favouriteMore neutral: the Net Zero spending commitment

    Describing the policy as a Westminster favourite implies favouritism rather than a government priority.

    But now, it is claimed the Westminster-favourite of cash for Net Zero may face the chop to pay for arms.

    Used byBreitbart News (Far Right)

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

1 outlet

Leads with

  • heat pump subsidies
  • defence spending
  • sources say
See the headline from the leftHide the headlines
  • The GuardianLeft

    Ministers preparing to Loaded verb“slash”Slash suggests deep cuts, while the reported change is a reduction of hundreds of millions from a budget that is not being abolished.More neutral: cutDisagree with this highlight? heat pump subsidies to fund defence spending

    Exclusive: Some of £2bn savings needed from energy budget expected to come from boiler upgrade scheme, sources say Ministers are preparing to slash the amount of money available to subsidise heat pumps as they look for ways to fund higher defence spending, sources have told the …

    Read at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Labour plan
  • industry backlash
  • defence spending drive
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines

From the right

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Net Zero spending
  • defence over climate priorities
  • possible cuts

Leaves out

  • that the scheme will not be abolished altogether

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the headline from the rightHide the headlines

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    First to report

    The Guardian, Oct 12, 1:00 AM EDT

  • Center

    7 hr 25 min later

    Its first report, Oct 12, 8:26 AM EDT

  • Right

    1 day 3 hr later

    Its first report, Oct 13, 4:29 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The GuardianLeftOct 12, 1:00 AM EDT
  2. Financial TimesCenterOct 12, 8:26 AM EDT
  3. Breitbart NewsFar RightOct 13, 4:29 AM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

Read next

Help someone else find the truth beneath the surface

Most people see one side of a story. Share this one, so they can see how every side is telling it and decide for themselves.

Email it

Seen a mistake? Tell us what is wrong with this page