UK had hottest summer since records began, Met Office says

The United Kingdom experienced its warmest summer since records began in 1884, with four heatwaves and a peak temperature of 35.8C in Faversham. June–August averaged 16.1C, 1.5C above the long-term meteorological average and surpassing the 2018 summer record. Met Office attribution links the increased likelihood of this summer to greenhouse gases emitted since the Industrial Revolution, warning that formerly extreme heat is becoming more common and much hotter summers are plausible. Political pledges to expand North Sea oil and gas extraction have drawn criticism from health experts and climate activists. UK infrastructure and health services faced strain from intensifying heat.

The United Kingdom has experienced its warmest summer since records began in 1884, and is more likely to see similar hot weather in the future due to human-induced climate change, the Met Office weather forecaster said. The country saw four heatwaves this summer, with the highest temperature of 35.8 degrees Celsius (96.4 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in Faversham, southeast England, the Met Office said on Monday.

June, July and August saw a mean average temperature of 16.1C (60.9F), surpassing a 2018 record of 15.8C (60.4F), the Met Office said, putting the summer of 2025 temperature at 1.5C (34.7F) above the long-term meteorological average. Our analysis shows that the summer of 2025 has been made much more likely because of the greenhouse gases humans have released since the Industrial Revolution, said the head of climate attribution at the Met Office, Mark McCarthy.

The announcement from the Met Office on Monday came as Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative Party, said her party would extract every last drop of oil and gas from the North Sea if re-elected, according to The Financial Times. Health experts and climate activists have warned that drilling for more oil and gas in the North Sea could have adverse consequences for climate change. The UK's infrastructure and health systems have struggled to keep up with the intensifying summer heat.

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