The Department works closely with a variety of stakeholders to ensure cross-sector preparedness in advance of potential risks that may manifest. From a seasonal preparedness perspective as we approach summer 2024, we are confident that, due to the diverse nature of the electricity system and the highly resilient equipment that is used throughout, the risks associated with extreme heat are low and it is unlikely that customers will be impacted. In the highly unlikely circumstance that the risks associated with extreme heat materialise, the most likely impact would be localised electricity disruption, for which electricity network operators have robust plans in place to mitigate.

The El Niño phenomenon exacerbates regional climate patterns and extreme weather events. Last month, excessive heat caused the temporary closure of some schools in South Sudan. The UK is one of the largest donors to education in South Sudan: we engage closely with the government, UNICEF, and education partners and will monitor the impact of interruptions to education. Our Humanitarian Assistance and Resilience in South Sudan programme has assisted approximately three million people by providing critical life-saving support and helping people to better cope with shocks from conflict, drought and flooding.

We closely monitor climatic conditions in Africa - including recent drought conditions in parts of Eastern and Southern Africa, where over 80 million people are experiencing crisis levels of food insecurity. In 2023 the UK was the 4th largest bilateral donor to humanitarian appeals in sub-Saharan Africa. Our programmes in the region are directly tackling food insecurity and poor access to safe water, in order to improve the nutritional and health status of children. The UK is also raising the profile of humanitarian needs with our international partners, maintaining a focus on the need for long-term solutions to climate related crises in the region, including drought.

Through the Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership, we are improving our understanding of the impact of climate change, including on sea temperature and marine biodiversity. Evidence suggests that increasing sea temperature is associated with a number of possible impacts on marine biodiversity, such as changes in the range, distribution and abundance of marine species, impacts on growth rates and size, and altered foodwebs due to the location of primary production and prey availability.

In the UK we are committed to ensuring that climate change adaptation, resilience and mitigation are fully considered and integrated in our marine and fisheries policies. The third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3) was published on 17 July 2023 and showcases our plans to adapt to and mitigate the risks of a warming climate on the marine environment, including to protect, restore and create blue carbon habitats and manage the risks and opportunities to marine species, habitats, and fisheries.

The number of UK Armed Forces personnel with a record for a Non-Freezing Cold Injury (NFCI) in each year since 2018 is presented in the table below:

The data is compiled from the following medical, safety and casualty reporting systems to provide the most complete picture possible:

1. Defence Medical Information Capability Programme
2. MOD Health and Safety reporting systems
3. Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre Notification of Casualty system
4. Defence Patient Tracking System

These systems have been searched for coded information or text entries relating to NFCI: information entered as free text is not included.

Guidance on recommended temperatures for classrooms are included in the energy efficiency guidance for schools. This guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/energy-efficiency-guidance-for-the-school-and-fe-college-estate/energy-efficiency-guidance-for-the-school-and-further-education-college-estate#heating.

More generally, the Health and Safety Executive’s published guidance includes the recommended minimum temperature for working indoors. This guidance can be found at: https://www.hse.gov.uk/temperature/employer/index.htm.