Comments on red extreme heat warning for England

“This will heap pressure on whoever the new PM is to come up with a better plan not only for coping with these extremes, but also for getting to net zero emissions because, put simply, if we don’t stop adding to the problem it’s only going to get worse.”

Professor Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, Chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges:

“The NHS has known for a long time that climate change was increasing the risks of serious harm to the health of the public, but we really didn’t think we’d be having to prepare for this kind of extreme heat so soon. Clearly, we must do everything we can to keep people safe in the coming days and the NHS will, yet again, be pulling out all the stops to provide the care that is needed. However, we also have to take this as a serious warning, learn lessons about how we operate and adapt our heat planning for the sake of people’s health.

“Underlying this of course must be a renewed commitment for us to get to net zero emissions as soon as we possibly can. If we do not act as a matter of urgency this sort of dangerous weather episode will become a regular occurrence and will lead to untold harm right on our doorstep – in ways we are already seeing around the world.”

Dr Sandy Robertson, Emergency Medicine Doctor, said: “It is unprecedented and worrying that we’re already hitting the maximum heat alert level given the impacts of climate change are set to worsen in the coming years. It only underlines the importance of hitting the net zero emissions target as soon as we can. If we don’t stop adding emissions to the atmosphere, these problems will only get worse and more people will suffer.”