Housebuilders will be required to fit solar panels to the “vast majority” of new homes in England in a bid to cut energy bills. 

The government is set to announce that the “future homes standard” will require new build homes to have solar panels and low-carbon heating, such as heat pumps, as soon as today, according to multiple media reports.

The move is seen as a sign that energy secretary Ed Miliband has won his battle with the Treasury to keep a £13.2bn fund to help retrofit homes to green standards, set to be announced in next week’s spending review.

The move is “just common sense,” Miliband told the BBC, adding that solar panels would save the typical household £500 a year on their energy bills.

The new rules will require developers to add panels to new homes, unless the buildings fall under certain exemptions, such as being covered by shade.

The Home Builders Federation said it backed fitting more solar panels but warned against introducing “burdensome” paperwork, which could hamper government efforts to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years.