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7h ago

UK Told to Plan for 2C Warming by 2050, With Infrastructure Upgradeable to 4C

The Climate Change Committee urges a five-year target framework with clear departmental accountability to shore up resilience across health, food, infrastructure, public services.

Beachgoers swim in the sea during warm weather as temperatures rise across the UK, in Brighton, Britain, June 30, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso
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Overview

  • Independent climate advisers warn the UK is not adapted to today’s extremes at roughly 1.3–1.4C of warming, highlighting widening risks to people and the economy.
  • At 2C, the annual chance of a heatwave effectively doubles, drought time in England doubles, peak rainfall on the wettest days rises 10–15%, and some peak river flows increase by up to 40%.
  • Ministers are advised to ensure new homes, power networks and other long‑lived assets can be upgraded to cope with up to 4C of global heating by the end of the century.
  • The advice, issued in a letter requested by floods minister Emma Hardy, follows the UK’s hottest summer on record with widespread drought and one of the worst harvests on record.
  • The CCC calls for a formal adaptation framework to 2050 with five‑year targets and clear departmental responsibilities, with a detailed adaptation report due next May.