London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 03, 2025

UK heatwave: Why is it so hot?

UK heatwave: Why is it so hot?

The Met Office says we could see Britain's hottest recorded temperature within hours, an extraordinary milestone.

So why are we seeing such brutal temperatures? Most climate scientists say the answer is climate change.

The Met Office estimates that the extreme heat we will be seeing over the next couple of days has been made ten times more likely because of it.

We are being warned it could pose a life-threatening risk to even normally healthy people, and just look at the impact it is having in our hospitals, schools and transport systems.

Now remember, this is happening when average world temperatures have only risen just over 1C beyond levels seen before many parts of the world became industrialised.

One degree doesn't sound much, does it? But we're living in the hottest period for 125,000 years, according to the UN's climate science body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

We know what's behind this - the greenhouse gas emissions caused by our burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas, which trap heat in our atmosphere. They have helped push the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to the highest levels seen for 2 million years, according to the IPCC.


So where is our climate headed?

The target set by the UN is to limit global temperature increases to 1.5C higher than pre-industrial levels. It says that should avoid the most dangerous impacts of climate change.

To do that, emissions need to have peaked by 2025 - yes, in only two and half years.

CO2 emissions from energy increased by 6% in 2021 to 36.3 billion tonnes - the highest ever level, the International Energy Agency estimates.

They need to virtually halve by 2030 - we need a minimum 43% reduction by the end of this decade, according to the IPCC.

Then the world needs to scale back emissions to net zero by 2050. That means cutting greenhouse gases as much as possible and finding ways to draw CO2 out of the atmosphere to make up for any that remain.

It is a huge challenge - many people believe the greatest challenge humanity has ever faced.

Remember that big UN conference in Glasgow last year? If all the promises governments made there were actually implemented, then we'd be looking at temperatures rising by something like 2.4C from pre-industrial levels by the end of the century.

But the truth is even if we do succeed in reducing emissions to that really ambitious 1.5C target, UK summers will continue to get hotter.

"In a few decades this might actually be a quite a cool summer," says Professor Friederike Otto, a climate scientist at Imperial College London.

We should expect more and longer heatwaves in the future, says Professor Nigel Arnell, a climate scientist at Reading University.

We will be seeing more heat-health alerts, more heat-stress days - days when it is too hot to work - and damaging heat extremes to increase, he warns.


So what is the UK doing about it?

Nowhere near enough, is the stark conclusion of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), the government's advisors on climate change.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned the world was at "one minute to midnight" on climate change in his speech opening the Glasgow climate conference.

But in a report on the UK's progress towards net zero the CCC warned that his government's current policies are very unlikely to do the job.

It said the government has set a lot of targets and put a lot of policies in place but warns there is "scant evidence" these goals will be delivered.

And the country is not doing enough to prepare itself for the more frequent and intense heatwaves climate change will bring.

Heatwaves caused an additional 2,000 deaths in 2020, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

That figure is likely to triple in coming decades without government action, according to Baroness Brown, deputy chair of the Climate Change Committee.

"We've been telling the government for over 10 years that we are nothing like well enough prepared in the UK for the really hot weather we are seeing now," she says - particularly the extreme heat many people experience in their homes.

It is a "disgrace" people are dying of heat - or for that matter cold - in the UK, says Professor Hannah Cloke of the University of Reading.

Most UK buildings and infrastructure were not designed to cope with the kind of temperatures we are seeing this week and much more needs to be done to adapt them, she says.

"We have made great strides in forecasting extreme weather and climate conditions in recent years. Now we need the systems in place so that people and governments act on the warnings we can provide, whether three hours, three days, or three decades in advance."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
×