After record-breaking May temperatures in Chesterfield, MP calls for preparations for extreme heat
Last week saw Chesterfield baking in stifling temperatures as Britain enjoyed and endured its hottest ever May Day. Locally thermometers racked up 32 degrees for two days in a row, with a heat alert over the bank holiday weekend. And across the UK, the scorching weather shattered records, making this the warmest spring since 1884.
Lots of people enjoy the hot weather, but the golden suntan can also have negative effects. The weather last week ensured that the 1940s market in Chesterfield was packed, with local pubs and restaurants busy. But for some, the heat can be risky. The UK Health Security Agency has warned of health risks caused by high temperatures. Last year, there were four heat-related deaths in Derbyshire during period of extreme heat, and 1311 such deaths across England. The 2022 heatwave saw 3000 excess deaths, with the elderly, pregnant women and asthmatics particularly at risk.
More extreme heat is anticipated this summer and in future years. Scientists at the Met Office have warned that these scorching May temperatures indicate the longer-term warming of the planet, with extreme heat more likely to occur more often.
Amid these record-breaking temperatures, Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins, as Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, is spearheading a new investigation into the health risks of extreme heat and how the UK should adapt to a rapidly heating climate.
The cross-party Environmental Audit Committee, is a select committee tasked with scrutinising the government’s performance against environmental targets, and held an evidence session today (Wednesday 3 June) on extreme heat, hearing from expert witnesses from the Met Office, the UK Health Security Agency, and the Chair of the National Heat Risk Commission, as well as the Government’s own Climate Change Committee’s Adaptation Committee.
The Committee heard that there are health risks, including early death, to extreme heat. Extreme heat also puts at risk critical infrastructure such as our energy system and transport system. They heard from the Climate Change Committee that cooling should be put into schools and hospitals as a matter of priority.
Toby Perkins MP said: “I enjoy the hotter weather under normal circumstances, but the increasing severity and frequency of heat that we are seeing and across the UK leaves many people exposed to health and safety risks.
“As climate change makes extreme heat more likely, we need to ensure the UK is well-prepared to deal with heat, in our homes, our workplaces, and in our children’s schools.
“My Environmental Audit Committee in our session investigating extreme heat today heard that action to adapt to extreme heat must not be pushed into the future – delay will only lead to higher costs, more lives lost, and more livelihoods ruined.”
The full Environmental Audit Committee session on extreme heat can be viewed online- https://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/a09f263f-c7f1-48d7-9f9d-d0af6f85d919.