Homes with poor energy performance could be banned from the sales market, with owners having to upgrade them before being allowed to sell them.

The call has come from the Committee on Climate Change and could affect at least 1.2m homes with EPC ratings of F and G.

As with the changes about to be phased in for rental properties from this April, owners would have to upgrade their properties to at least band E.

The Committee is initially suggesting incentives such as low-interest loans, but says if home-owners are slow to upgrade their homes on a voluntary basis, it should be made mandatory.

Another suggested incentive could benefit buyers in the form of discounted Stamp Duty if they upgrade the property shortly after its purchase.

David Joffe, the committee’s ‘head of carbon budgets’, said that targeting homes at the point of sale made sense because they were often upgraded at that time anyway.

The committee is also calling for higher energy standards in new homes, saying that housebuilders have done the absolute minimum.

Committee chairman Lord Deben said housebuilders should publish the expected costs of heating and lighting for each home.

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