Scrap exams in June because of ‘hot school halls', expert says
Baroness Brown, chair of adaptation for the UK Committee on Climate Change, said exams should be moved to cooler months.
Her comments came after a Met Office report said extreme weather had become 'the new normal' in Britain as a result of global warming.
Baroness Brown told the BBC's Today Programme: 'Our children take their most important exams of their lives at the hottest time of the year, often in very hot school halls with big plate glass windows. Why do we make them do that in June?
'Maybe we should do that at a different time of the year when they would be more productive and able to think better - we know that hot conditions affect people's performance and productivity.'
Met Office experts have said the UK's climate is 'notably different' from just a few decades ago as the latest state of the UK climate report shows the impact of human-caused global warming on the UK's weather, seas, people and wildlife.
Mike Kendon, Met Office climate scientist and lead author of the report, said: 'It's the extremes of temperature and rainfall that is changing the most, and that's of profound concern, and that's going to continue in the future.'
The report said that the last three years have been in the top five warmest on record for the UK, and comes as the country experiences its third heatwave of the year so far.
Last year was the fourth warmest in records dating back to 1884, while the year had the warmest May and warmest spring on record – already beaten by 2025's record hot spring.
Baroness Brown said: 'We need to learn those hot weather behaviours that you might see in the south of France which would be that you would close your windows or shutters or curtains during the day where the air outside is hotter than the air inside your house and open them at night
'I know that's not feasible for everybody if you live in a ground floor flat in London it might not be very safe to open your windows at night.
'Where we can we need to try and adopt those hot weather behaviours and making those hot weather changes to our homes as well.'
One year in, Labour has been fiercely criticised over its approach to the environment, including concerns around planning reforms sidelining nature in pursuit of growth.
The crossbench peer said on Monday: 'This isn't going away and this isn't just 'oh, we're having a lovely summer'. This is a real change that we need to respond to and one of the things we need to think a lot more in the UK is how we respond to heat.
'We are trying to persuade the government that we should have a heat strategy. Because heat affects everything.'
After the report's publication, energy secretary Ed Miliband said Britain's way of life is 'under threat' from climate change.
He said: 'Whether it is extreme heat, droughts, flooding, we can see it actually with our own eyes, that it's already happening, and we need to act.
'That's why the Government has a central mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower and tackle the climate crisis.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
More of England expected to enter drought status after hottest June on record
As many as five areas of England are expected to go into drought this summer after the hottest June since records began in 1884. Three heatwaves, which tend to increase water consumption, combined with a lack of rain means that large swathes of England are heading towards drought status and the damage to the environment that entails. Officials from the Met Office and Environment Agency told journalists in a briefing that they expected more hosepipe bans to be enacted across the country this summer. Richard Thompson, the deputy director for water resources at the EA, said the agency had been pressing water companies to enact their drought plans, including hosepipe bans. He confirmed that more regions were expected to enter drought status and the affected regions would be confirmed on Tuesday. Thames Water on Monday announced a hosepipe ban for households in Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Wiltshire. Yorkshire Water and South East Water have already put temporary use bans in place. Yorkshire and the north-west of England are officially in drought status while the north-east, East Midlands, West Midlands and much of Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Surrey are in prolonged dry weather status, the level below drought. Water companies have been in preliminary discussions with the EA about drought permits, the officials added. These permits allow water companies, in exceptional circumstances, to extract more water from the environment than they would usually be allowed to. The EA tries to avoid granting these permits because it can severely damage rivers and other aquatic environments, particularly when river flows are already low. Martin Salter, the head of policy at the Angling Trust, said: 'Water resource planning in the UK has been wholly inadequate for generations with no serious provision made for the impacts of climate change and population growth. Reservoir building has been minimal and leakage rates are still far too high and as a result it is always the environment that suffers. Hosepipe bans right now are obviously necessary but the problem goes far deeper than a bit of short term tinkering while our rivers suffocate and wildlife dies.' No major reservoirs have been completed in England since 1992, shortly after the water sector was privatised, and water companies leak about 3bn litres a day through faulty pipes. A landmark report from the Met Office has found searingly hot days and devastatingly heavy rainfall are happening at increasing frequency as a result of climate breakdown. Farmers have been banned from abstracting water to irrigate their crops and the grass has dried up in many areas, meaning they are having to use winter feed for their livestock. Stuart Sampson, a water resources manager at the EA, said the dry spring meant farmers started irrigating their crops early and had used up their abstraction licences for the year. He added that root vegetables such as carrots, potatoes and onions were likely to suffer as a result of the drought. There have also been many fish die offs as river flows are exceptionally low, with low oxygen levels meaning fish suffocate. The warm conditions have caused harmful algal blooms on rivers and lakes across England and the reservoirs that feed canals are in their worst state for 20 years, he added. Lucy Barker, a senior hydrological analyst at the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, said rivers were as low as they had been in some of the country's worst droughts. She added: 'The exceptionally dry weather of the spring continued in the east of Britain in June, and has resulted in some exceptionally low flows, many of which are similar to – or lower than – those seen in droughts like 1976, 2018 and 2022. Although the wet weather in June has led to some recovery in river flows and soil moisture levels in the west, this is unlikely to have eradicated the long-term deficits that have been established since the start of year, if not in late 2024 in some places.'
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
UK weather: Met Office warns of heavy rain and thunderstorms after 29C sunshine… but millions still face hosepipe ban
There's still plenty of heat for many SPLASH DOWN UK weather: Met Office warns of heavy rain and thunderstorms after 29C sunshine… but millions still face hosepipe ban Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE Met Office is warning of heavy rain and thunderstorms after Brits were basking in scorching heat again yesterday. But 2.5million households are on the brink of a hosepipe ban thanks to the scorching spring and summer so far, as reported by The Sun last night. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Yesterday Brits were basking 29C Credit: Alamy 3 Heavy rain is expected today Credit: Alamy 3 A Met Office chart showing the spread of rain today Credit: MET OFFICE It comes after Brits flocked to beaches yesterday, with forecasts of 29C. Meteorologist Alex Deakin said: "It's fair to say the weather's changed tack a fair bit... it's going to be a wet day for some, welcome rain in places, but also unseasonably windy." However, he said much of East Anglia and the Southeast will avoid much of the downpours, though not the breeze with wind gusts forecast at up to 45mph. Mr Deakin went on to say, there were six hour rainfall "accumulations" through the night across much of the country - and up to three inches more is due to fall throughout the day. READ MORE NEWS WEATHER WATCH Temperature to change over next few days & exact date for next 35C scorcher "Over the hills we could see 75, maybe even 80mm of rain - but even at lower levels 20 to 30mm is possible," he said. The meteorologist continued: "It's welcome rain for some because it has been quite a dry spring and summer, to say the least. "It's also been a pretty warm summer so far but today temperatures are much closer to the average and feeling quite a bit cooler." Met Office weather charts show highs of 22C in the south this afternoon. Meanwhile, Thames Water said it will impose hosepipe restrictions from next Tuesday in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, most of Wiltshire and parts of Berkshire. Yorkshire Water and South East Water have already announced the measures affecting six million customers. 'We should've known better', says stranded beachgoers as hundreds of Irish flock to overcrowded beach as temps hit 30.8C Sources said Southern Water — which supplies Kent, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, and East & West Sussex — is also days away from its own ban. Up to five more regions could be in a drought by September, according to the Environment Agency.
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
UK weather: Met Office warns of heavy rain and thunderstorms after 29C sunshine… but millions still face hosepipe ban
THE Met Office is warning of heavy rain and thunderstorms after Brits were basking in scorching heat again yesterday. But 2.5million households are on the brink of a hosepipe ban thanks to the scorching spring and summer so far, as reported by The Sun last night. 3 3 3 It comes after Brits flocked to beaches yesterday, with forecasts of 29C. Meteorologist Alex Deakin said: "It's fair to say the weather 's changed tack a fair bit... it's going to be a wet day for some, welcome rain in places, but also unseasonably windy." However, he said much of East Anglia and the Southeast will avoid much of the downpours, though not the breeze with wind gusts forecast at up to 45mph. Mr Deakin went on to say, there were six hour rainfall "accumulations" through the night across much of the country - and up to three inches more is due to fall throughout the day. "Over the hills we could see 75, maybe even 80mm of rain - but even at lower levels 20 to 30mm is possible," he said. The meteorologist continued: "It's welcome rain for some because it has been quite a dry spring and summer, to say the least. "It's also been a pretty warm summer so far but today temperatures are much closer to the average and feeling quite a bit cooler." Met Office weather charts show highs of 22C in the south this afternoon. Meanwhile, Thames Water said it will impose restrictions from next Tuesday in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, most of Wiltshire and parts of Berkshire. Yorkshire Water and South East Water have already announced the measures affecting six million customers. Sources said Southern Water — which supplies Kent, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, and East & West Sussex — is also days away from its own ban. Up to five more regions could be in a drought by September, according to the Environment Agency. UK 5-day weather forecast Today: Outbreaks of rain in the north and west this morning, followed by scattered showers this afternoon. Showers will be heavy in northern and central areas, with some thunderstorms too. Cloudy for most today and rather windy, particularly in the south. Tonight: Showers and strong winds will gradually fade this evening, although a few showers will continue overnight. Low cloud and drizzle will push into the southwest during the early hours. Wednesday: Dry and warm for many on Wednesday with sunny spells. Cloudier in southwest England and Wales with drizzle outbreaks. A few showers developing in the north in the afternoon. Outlook for Thursday to Saturday: Largely dry in the south and east on Thursday and Friday with very warm sunshine. Cloudier in the north and west with rain. Cooler this weekend with more widespread rain.
