Boiling Britain: Number of 'uncomfortably hot' days in the UK is set to increase by 150% by 2050, study warns

The number of 'uncomfortably hot' days in the UK is set to increase by a whopping 150 per cent by 2050, a new study has warned.

Researchers from the University of Oxford modelled what the weather will look like if the world warms by 2°C. 

While this sounds like a lot, they warn this scenario is becoming 'increasingly likely'. 

The results revealed that under these conditions, the number of uncomfortably hot days will increase by 150 per cent in the UK, and by staggering 230 per cent in Ireland. 

Given these countries are largely designed to cope with cold conditions, this temperature increase could have 'disproportionately severe impacts', the experts warn.

'Our study shows most of the changes in cooling and heating demand occur before reaching the 1.5°C threshold, which will require significant adaptation measures to be implemented early on,' said Dr Jesus Lizana, lead author of the study. 

'For example, many homes may need air conditioning to be installed in the next five years, but temperatures will continue to rise long after that if we hit 2.0°C of global warming.

'To achieve the global goal of net–zero carbon emissions by 2050, we must decarbonise the building sector while developing more effective and resilient adaptation strategies.'

Many communities around the world are already faced with extreme heat. 

For example, in 2010, research revealed that almost a quarter (23 per cent) of the world's population lived under scorching conditions. 

In their new study, the team set out to understand how that proportion will change if the world continues to warm.

And their results paint a worrying picture of what's to come. 

According to their model, by 2030, 34 per cent of the world – the equivalent of 2.8 billion people – will live in extreme heat regions. 

Looking further ahead, by 2050, that will increase to 41 per cent, leaving 3.79 billion people facing extreme heat. 

The countries affected the most will be India, Nigeria, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines, according to the study. 

However, that's not to say that people in the UK will be protected. 

The researchers also found that countries with colder climates will see a much larger relative change in uncomfortably hot days. 

Warming to 2°C would lead to a 100 per cent increase in the number of uncomfortably hot days in Austria and Canada, a 150 per cent increase in the UK, Sweden, Finland, a 200 per cent increase in Norway, and a 230 per cent increase in Ireland. 

The researchers hope the findings will prompt urgent action to curb emissions.  

'Our findings should be a wake–up call,' warned Dr Radhika Khosla, co–author of the study. 

'Overshooting 1.5°C of warming will have an unprecedented impact on everything from education and health to migration and farming.

'Net zero sustainable development remains the only established path to reversing this trend for ever hotter days. 

'It is imperative politicians regain the initiative towards it.'

The news comes shortly after the Met Office confirmed that 2025 was Britain's hottest year on record.

The average temperature in the UK last year was a balmy 10.09°C, which is 0.96°C above the long–term average. 

2025 joins 2022 and 2023 in the top three warmest years since 1884. 

According to the Met Office, this is a 'clear demonstration of the impacts of climate change'. 

Dr Mark McCarthy, head of climate attribution at the Met Office, said: 'We're increasingly seeing UK temperatures break new ground in our changing climate, as demonstrated by a new highest UK mean temperature record just three years after the last record.

'This very warm year is in line with expected consequences of human–induced climate change. 

'Although it doesn't mean every year will be the warmest on record, it is clear from our weather observations and climate models that human–induced global warming is impacting the UK's climate.'