Ministers “asleep at the wheel” as Met Office issues first ever ‘red’ extreme heat warning

Labour warned Ministers are “asleep at the wheel” as the Prime Minister’s spokesman has confirmed the UK is facing a national emergency due to the extreme heat. 

The Met Office has warned of an “exceptional hot spell on Monday and Tuesday leading to widespread impacts on people and infrastructure”, implementing a level 4 alert. 

This indicates a heatwave “so severe and/or prolonged that its effects extend outside the health and social care system. At this level, illness and death may occur among the fit and healthy, not just in high-risk groups.”

Ministers and Whitehall officials held a Cobra meeting yesterday on the heatwave gripping Britain. The summit of the Government’s emergencies committee was chaired by newly appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Kit Malthouse.

Malthouse told BBC’s World at One yesterday: “People need to take care, do all the stuff they would do when it is very hot – wear a hat, drink water – but critically also the most vulnerable groups – the elderly, those with cardiovascular problems and the very young – that people look out for them and take care.”

There has, however, been no specification on how employers should respond to the rising temperatures to keep employees safe. In a letter to Kit Malthouse yesterday, Labour Deputy Leader Angela Rayner and Shadow Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband called on the Government to ensure public safety is prioritised in a planned response to the heatwave.

Labour is calling for guidance on safe indoor working temperatures, and to ensure employers allow their staff to work flexibly and take more frequent breaks.  

Today Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting wrote to newly appointed Health Secretary Steve Barclay urging the government to act on calls from NHS Confederation and the Royal College of Emergency Medicine for greater capacity in social care to free up hospital beds. 

Angela Rayner, Labour Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said:

“Ministers are asleep at the wheel. The public will have no confidence in this zombie government to respond swiftly and decisively to this national emergency.

“We need urgent assurances that the necessary mitigations are urgently being put in place. 

“It’s no good Ministers simply saying that people should wear a hat and drink water and then go silent on those facing working in unbearable conditions, the lack of ventilation in schools, hospitals and care homes, or the looming travel chaos on the railways and roads over the coming days.

“We need urgent guidance for safe indoor working temperatures, and the Government must ensure employers allow staff to work flexibly in the heat. 

“Ministers have gone missing in action when we need a real plan properly communicated on the delivery of essential services and how people will be kept safe.”

Ed Miliband, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero, said:

“We cannot have a situation where we are so unprepared that our homes and workplaces are too hot, our rail tracks melt, and our ambulances are on critical alert.

“We need a Government that is taking serious action to adapt our infrastructure and keep workers safe in this warming world. We also need a Government that will take the threat of the climate emergency seriously."

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1.   The first Red Extreme heat warning issued: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/press-office/news/weather-and-climate/2022/red-extreme-heat-warning

2.   NHS facing surge in demand amid extreme weather warning:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-62169184

3.   Text of the letter to Kit Malthouse is below: 

Dear Rt Hon Kit Malthouse MP, 

We are writing in light of the current extreme weather which could see record temperatures of 40°C over the next week. 

This could cause risk to life, will impact on workplace safety and will affect our critical national infrastructure. As the Minister with oversight of the Government’s response to national emergencies, we would like assurances that ministers are taking appropriate measures to ensure the British public’s safety in this unprecedented heat. 

The Met Office has already issued an amber weather warning to parts of the country over the next week, and it is being reported that a ‘Level 4’ health alert could be imposed. TheHealth Security Agency has said in this scenario, there could be risk of “illness and death may occur among the fit and healthy” as well as vulnerable groups. All ambulancetrusts have declared the highest state of alert, warning of “extreme pressures” as the heatwave unfolds. There will be acute consequences for the workplace, and some workers may find themselves working in unsafe conditions. We are also already seeing rail delays due to the heat. 

The country must not be led by a Government that is asleep at the wheel. Given the chaos over the past week and the potential distraction of a leadership election involving many key ministers, we are asking for clarity on: 

·         What plans do you have to ensure workplace safety during this heatwave? Will you look into providing guidance on safe indoor working temperatures, ensuring employers allow their staff to work flexibly and making sure employers allow workers to take more breaks? With temperatures expected to soar to the thirties this week, we are deeply concerned that with intervention, workers’ health will be put at risk.

·         What plans are you making to protect the UK’s critical national infrastructure against extreme heat, particularly our train networks, roads, energy and telecommunications infrastructure?

·         What steps are you taking to mitigate the long-term risk of extreme heat, given that UK Climate Projections show a hot summer like 2018 and 2022 are likely to occur every other year by 2050? Can Ministers update Parliament on what progress is being made to prepare the UK’s homes, workplaces, and infrastructure to adapt to more frequent heatwaves?

The first duty of the Government is to protect the British people, including at work. Each new heatwave is yet another reminder both that we must rapidly upgrade our national infrastructure to meet this new reality, and of the pressing debt we owe to future generations to tackle the climate emergency. If we do not rapidly act to bring down carbon emissions, we will leave our country poorer, more insecure, and more dangerous for future generations. 

The British public deserves strong action to help get people through this unprecedented weather. We hope that appropriate measures are taken to keep the British people safe, especially at work, and that ministers are not distracted given the chaos of the past week. 

Yours sincerely, 

Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work 

Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero