A report commissioned by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) says the UK should leave significant research and development in hydrogen technology to other countries, the Sunday Herald has claimed.

"You don't need a seat at the table for everything. Global markets will ensure that good products are developed," the draft report states.

Countries such as the US, Japan and China are investing billions of dollars into creating a "hydrogen economy", with the US sponsoring a five-year programme worth $1.2 billion.

Rupert Gammon, technical advisor to the West Beacon Farm Project in Leicestershire, accused the government of "short-sightedness" in the report, saying that a renewable energy system and hydrogen technologies had to be developed together.

"People are saying let's build fuel cell cars, but it's where the hydrogen comes from which is absolutely central to what makes it green or non-green," he said.

"The whole lot has got to come from sustainable sources. Hydrogen is the only thing that anybody has come up with that actually ties these together."

Others fear that the report ignores the benefit of hydrogen technology to areas with significant renewable energy potential, in particular in the Western Isles, the Northern Isles and parts of the Highlands.

A spokeswoman for the DTI said the government was committed to tackling climate change and pointed out that hydrogen and fuel cells were still at the research stage. The government response is to be published by the end of the month.