"In the summertime, when the weather is high, you can stretch right up and touch the sky" - Mungo Jerry’s 1970s hit was riding high in the UK charts in the hot summer of 1976. At the same time, the heat and prolonged dryness resulted in the government of the day appointing a Minister for Drought. 2025 has seen higher temperatures and more frequent heatwave events, with some areas already experiencing drier conditions than in 1976.
It’s really hot in the UK – halfway through July at the mid-point of meteorological summer and it’s become clear that this year has been far from ordinary. We have so far had three official heatwaves - defined as a period of at least three consecutive days where a specific location experiences daily maximum temperatures exceeding a set threshold. These limits vary across the country, reflecting regional climate differences, with some areas having a minimum of 25°C and others 28°C. Record-breaking temperatures exceeded 30°C in several parts of the country as the third heatwave of 2025 hit the UK in the second week of July.
A high of 33°C was recorded in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, and Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales recorded their warmest days of the year so far. Streams are dry, reservoirs are at dangerously low levels with hosepipe bans in place, trees are visibly under stress, and the effect of such prolonged heat on wildlife leads to dehydration, difficulties finding food and shelter, and even death in extreme cases.
These temperatures are what we think of experiencing in summer in the southern Mediterranean, not in England’s cool and rainy green and pleasant land. And there is another one on the way according to the Met Office, the UK's highly respected national meteorological service, predicting that hot spots in the east and southeast of England may record our fourth heatwave in the next few days. This follows on from the driest spring in over a century, and the Met Office has issued a stark warning that extreme weather is the UK’s new normal. The publication this week of the Environment Agency’s fourth adaptation report sets out a forward agenda on how our role needs to change to meet the increasing challenges of the climate crisis – and protect our economy and society from unchecked climate impacts.
The UK Climate Change Committee, the independent statutory body which advises the government on preparing for and adapting to the effects of climate change, estimates that climate impacts could reduce UK economic output by 7% of GDP by 2050. The recent OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) report had equally sobering statistics on how unchecked climate impacts will affect the UK economy. So adaptation is not just important for the environment, it is a prerequisite for economic growth.
The EA’s adaptation report examines how our statutory duties and functions will be impacted by climate, underpinned by a rigorous climate risk assessment, and sets out the adaptation actions we can take to meet the challenge. It provides case studies of successful adaptation, working in partnership with others to make adaptation action happen. The underlying theme of this report is transformation – the inevitable transformation of our climate and environment, which is locked-in due to historic emissions, even if global Net Zero policies are successful. And the necessary transformation of environmental stewardship – how we relate to the environment, how we protect and enhance it, and how we rely on it to provide the foundations for our communities, wildlife and prosperity.
But the Environment Agency does not operate in a vacuum and will not manage this alone. Increasingly Governments will need to be forthright in accelerating policies and programmes that will deliver on adaptation. And for everyone – organisations, communities, and individuals. Businesses need to scale up, with leadership from Board and Executive level supporting action throughout entire organisations, and cascading the approach throughout their operations and supply chains. The public are more aware than ever before about how climate is now affecting the UK, and recent polling shows they are supportive of more climate action, not less, reflected globally. The biggest ever standalone public opinion survey on climate change conducted last year for the UN Development Programme (UNDP) with the University of Oxford, UK and GeoPoll, the Peoples’ Climate Vote 2024, shows 80% of people globally want their governments to take stronger action to tackle the climate crisis. Even more - 86% - want to see their countries set aside geopolitical differences and work together on climate change. The scale of consensus is especially striking in the current global context of increased conflict and the rise of nationalism.
The next 5-10 years will be a crucial period for adaptation – our chance to be proactive and reduce long term climate risks before they cause significant disruption and unimaginable harm to our environment, our health and prosperity.
Have a great summer
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