Summer 2025 warmest on record: Met Office - comment

“2025 was the warmest spring on record for the UK [2] and now it’s the hottest summer. Alongside one of the driest springs in a century and a series of heatwaves [3], this has taken a real toll on Britain’s farmers, with harvest 2025 once again heading for near record low [4] and livestock farmers struggling to grow enough grass to feed their animals. And it’s not just farming that is suffering. 2025 has smashed the records for wildfires, as the area burned is more than 60% higher than the previous worst year [5]. And now food prices are on the rise as farmers and retailers warn the impact of this year drought will continue into the autumn [6].
 
“This record is not a one off. It follows the hottest ever UK day in 2022 and the wettest winter on record in 2023. This isn’t just weather, it is the impact of climate change in real time, and these impacts will only get worse if we don’t do more to reduce emissions of planet warming greenhouse gases to net zero. As much as we can do more to help industries like farming to adapt, the only real insurance against these climate impacts is to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to net zero. This should now be viewed as a priority for our long-term food security."

The analysis by Met Office climate scientists also shows that "a summer as hot or hotter than 2025 is now 70 times more likely than it would be in a ‘natural’ climate with no human caused greenhouse gas emissions."