Will a heatwave help your solar panels perform better?
solar panels perform optimally at 25 degrees Celsius or below, with efficiency decreasing by approximately 0.34-0.5 percentage points for each degree above this temperature.
During the UK's record 40.3°C heatwave in July 2022, good solar panels operated at about 5 per cent below their peak efficiency.
Despite the heat, the commercial solar sector performed well during the record heatwave, contributing 8.6 per cent of the UK's electricity needs that day.
Investing in solar panels can be beneficial for homeowners, with payback periods ranging from 5 to 13 years depending on factors like system size, roof orientation, and electricity usage patterns.
solar panels have a long lifespan of up to 30 years, making them a viable long-term investment, especially with future heatwaves expected to be longer and hotter in the UK.
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Sky News
27 minutes ago
- Sky News
Most important part of chancellor's annual Mansion House speech was what wasn't said
The real story from Tuesday night's Mansion House was more what didn't happen than what did happen. These speeches are traditionally the chancellor's big annual opportunity to announce reforms to the financial sector, and to the way the government taxes and regulates the money system. Speculation was rife in the run-up to this one that Rachel Reeves would impose new constraints on the amount that people can put into tax-free ISA savings. Some wondered, too, whether the chancellor would impose new taxes on the banking system, softening the blow slightly by loosening the capital requirements and certification rules that make it harder to recruit top bankers. In the event, neither happened. The chancellor did not announce any changes to the ISA scheme, though she added that she "will continue to consider further changes to ISAs". She didn't announce an increase of the bank levy, as some suspected, though she did loosen some of the regulations facing bankers. There was a host of other plans announced, collected into a package Ms Reeves has dubbed the "Leeds Reforms" (after the city which contains her constituency - also home to many financial firms). The chancellor said these amounted to "the most wide-ranging package of reforms to financial services regulation in more than a decade". But given the previous chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, made very similar noises three years ago when he announced his own "Edinburgh Reforms", and given many in the financial sector judge that very little has changed, you have reason to be a little sceptical. Impactful reforms None of which is to say you won't be affected by any of the reforms announced on Tuesday night. If you are planning to buy a home, one change just announced (actually by the Bank of England, not the Treasury) should serve to make more high loan-to-value mortgages available for buyers - in particular, mortgages at more than 4.5 times a buyer's income. However, perhaps the most significant of all the elements of the chancellor's speech wasn't the "Leeds Reforms" or the fact that there weren't changes to the ISA regime or the bank levy - it was the fiscal elephant in the room. Because only a couple of weeks ago, everything changed. The government performed a drastic u-turn on its welfare reforms, leaving a gaping hole in the public finances, that (all else equal) will have to be filled with either higher taxes, less spending or more borrowing. Shortly afterwards, the chancellor was pictured in tears in the House of Commons. Markets responded dramatically. This was the chancellor's first speech since that moment. So the real question on Tuesday night was whether she would refer either to the black hole or to the tears. Well, there was a glancing reference to the latter. Referring to a recent visit to a school, where she was asked what job she most wanted in the world, the chancellor said: "Given the events of the last few weeks, I suspect many of you would sympathise if I had said: 'anything but chancellor.' "But I didn't. "I am proud to stand here tonight and address you for a second time at Mansion House as the Chancellor of the Exchequer." Speaking of the fiscal rules hemming her in, she also said: "This government and I remain committed to our non-negotiable rules." All of which raises the question: how will the government meet those rules? The most likely answer is: higher taxes. The real question is: which taxes, and when do we learn about them? The Mansion House speech provided no further answers.
BBC News
33 minutes ago
- BBC News
Rachel Reeves inadvertently breached rules on gifts, says MPs watchdog
Chancellor Rachel Reeves inadvertently breached parliamentary rules by missing the deadline for registering gifts, the MPs' watchdog has April, Reeves referred herself to the parliamentary commissioner for standards after she failed to declare in the list of MPs' interests tickets given to her by the National Theatre within the required 28 days. In a letter to the commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, Reeves said that "due to an oversight" she had initially only listed the donation in the register for ministers but not for MPs. The commissioner noted Reeves' apology for the late registration and said he would be closing his inquiry. The investigation related to two donations made by the National Theatre in central first was for two tickets to a performance and a dinner in March 2024, valued at £265. The second was for four tickets to a performance in December 2024, valued at £276. MPs are expected to declare gifts or benefits above the value of £300 within 28 days of receipt. Ministers who receive gifts worth more than £140 in their ministerial capacity have to list the donation in the list of ministers' interests. Reeves registered the tickets from the National Theatre on 27 March 2025. Reeves told the commissioner "the oversight which led to the late entry relates to the ambiguity around accepting hospitality which is neither clearly in my ministerial capacity nor my capacity as a Member of Parliament"."In general, it is likely that my ministerial position means I am offered hospitality of this kind more frequently, and in this case, as you know, my team and I initially declared the hospitality on my ministerial register only," she said."In order to be maximally transparent, I subsequently took the view that it would be better to consistently record the hospitality on both registers."Replying to Reeves, Greenberg said he believed she had breached rule five of the MPs' code of conduct."It should have been clear to you that the gift related to your membership of the House or political activities, and it should have been registered within the 28-day time limit set by the House," he said. "This has been a difficult decision," he wrote but added: "I have concluded on balance that your failure was inadvertent, although greater attention to the rules could and should have avoided it."Replying to Greenberg, Reeves said she accepted his decision and reiterated her apology for the added that she had put in place "more regular communication" between her Parliament and Treasury teams "to ensure information on gifts and hospitality is shared in a timely manner".She said she would seek "more thorough advice" from Treasury officials about ministerial gifts but added: "I am also not intending to accept further tickets of this kind going forward."Last summer Reeves, along with the prime minister, became embroiled in a row over accepting freebies from clothing to concert tickets. Earlier this year, she defended accepting free tickets to a Sabrina Carpenter concert at London's O2 arena saying: "I do now have security which means it's not as easy as it would have been in the past to just sit in a concert."A few days later she told ITV she faced a "balancing act in my job to try and be a good parent" alongside security added: "I felt I was doing the right thing, but I do understand perceptions. I recognise the feeling here. I have no intention of doing that again."
The Sun
40 minutes ago
- The Sun
Liverpool's ambitious move for Isak can keep Man Utd off their perch once and for all… Fergie would have done the same
THREE decades of looking enviously at Manchester United's dominance clearly brought home the critical lessons to Liverpool. Having toppled the Anfield side off their 'perch', Sir Alex Ferguson set about establishing his own empire. 7 7 That meant never resting on their laurels — enjoy the moment, celebrate, then start again, making the changes needed to refresh and improve. If that means upsetting some of your players, so be it. The club comes first. And while Arne Slot won his first Prem crown by just tweaking the framework he had inherited from Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool's willingness to smash the British transfer record and bring Alexander Isak to Merseyside for £120million is the clearest signal that the Dutchman is looking to create something permanent. The move for Swedish star Isak, 25, is more than an isolated push in a summer of treading water. Instead, it is Slot laying out his cards. Winning the title was great. But it is only the beginning of his ambitions. With nearly a month to go before the start of the new season and Liverpool's team to face Bournemouth on August 15 could show four changes from Slot's first XI last term. Slot's fellow Dutchman Jeremie Frimpong was recruited from Bayer Leverkusen for £29.5m to fill the void left by Trent Alexander-Arnold's decision to move to Real Madrid. But the other transfer targets were about building something even better from a position of strength. Andy Robertson was a Klopp mainstay for seven trophy-stacked seasons but the Scot has started to look increasingly vulnerable. Slot suggested Robertson's disrupted pre-season last summer was a factor but appeared to have signed his immediate replacement, bagging Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth for £40m. And while the midfield trio of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai brought far more control and poise in the engine room than for much of the Klopp era, Slot wanted to upgrade his options. He did that when Liverpool saw off Bayern Munich to lure Frimpong's Leverkusen club-mate Florian Wirtz, with just a little matter of £100m up front, plus up to £16.5m in add-ons. Now, with many inside and outside the club still mourning the tragic loss of Diogo Jota — something that, naturally, will long cast a shadow over the dressing room — Slot is thinking ahead once more. His interest in Isak has never exactly been hidden, although it appeared Newcastle, desperate to hang on to their attacking talisman, had held off Liverpool's desire to land him. But by making a direct approach now, with Isak all too aware that Liverpool are serious about getting him on board, the Anfield chief is showing he believes the title win was just the beginning. 7 TRANSFER NEWS LIVE - KEEP UP WITH ALL THE LATEST FROM A BUSY SUMMER WINDOW It is exactly what Fergie would have done, too. Remember how back-to-back crowns were followed by the shock of losing the title to Blackburn in 1995. Out went stalwarts Paul Ince, Mark Hughes and Andrei Kanchelskis. In came Beckham, Scholes, Butt and the Neville brothers, the Class of 92. It was a pattern that continued. Win then refresh. A pattern that helped Ferguson secure 13 Prem titles in the space of 21 seasons. All while Liverpool, who had been the ones to beat for so long, were suffering a title drought and only managed to finish second twice. Now, with the boot firmly on the other foot, it is Liverpool who are utilising their advantages — just as they always did in those glory days of the 70s and 80s. There may be more to come, too. Slot's signings are eye-catching but he has brought in nearly £56m from the departures of Alexander-Arnold, Jarell Quansah, Caoimhin Kelleher and Nat Phillips, with more to come if Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz go. With Madrid eyeing a move next summer for potentially out-of-contract Ibrahima Konate, the Reds have not given up on Marc Guehi at Crystal Palace. Isak, though, would be the icing on their cake. A line-leader who would offer a constant goal threat, able to hold the ball up and run in behind, and still not even entering his prime years. Keeping hold of Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah was Slot, making them believe last term was the launchpad. What he has done since is already looking like he could finally put Liverpool right back on that perch. 7 7 7
