Written question asked by Norman Baker (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 10 December 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 18 December 2003. It was answered by Elliot Morley (Labour) on Thursday, 18 December 2003 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the predicted changes in the frequency of the number of days when there is snowfall in the United Kingdom under future scenarios of climate change; and what regional variations were identified in that assessment. - (Holding answer 15 December 2003).

Answer: Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the predicted changes in the frequency of the number of days when there is snowfall in the United Kingdom under future scenarios of climate change; and what regional variations were identified in that assessment. [144121] Mr. Morley: [holding answer 15 December 2003]: In April 2002, the Department published new "Climate Change Scenarios for the UK". The scenarios do not contain an analysis of the changes in the number of snowfall days, but show that climate change will cause the amount of snowfall to decline significantly throughout the UK in the future. By the 2080s, large areas of the UK are likely to experience quite long sequences of snowless winters. Coastal areas and the English lowlands are likely to show the largest percentage reductions (up to 90 per cent. or more by the 2080s compared to 1961-1990 baseline), while the Scottish Highlands and parts of Northern Ireland may experience smaller percentage reductions (50 per cent. or less). In addition, in July 2003 the Met Office published climate change scenarios for small islands within the British-Irish Council region. These include the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, Western Isles, Orkney Islands, and Shetland Isles. Both reports are in the Libraries of both Houses.

Secondary information