A ferocious heatwave is sweeping across southern Europe, with red alerts issued for France, Italy, and Spain as temperatures climb beyond 40°C. Now the UK is bracing for its own record-breaking heat, with forecasts predicting the mercury could hit 38°C in parts of England by Wednesday. Meteorologists warn this is not just a few hot days: it is a public health emergency.
For the working class, this is more than a weather story. It is a story of survival in homes without air conditioning, on building sites where bosses refuse to stop work, and in hospital wards where the elderly and vulnerable will struggle. The middle classes may retreat to shaded gardens or switch on fans. But for millions on low wages, there is no escape from the heat. Landlords in poorly insulated tower blocks will charge rent regardless. Employers will demand productivity as usual. The cost of cooling – a supermarket fan at £25, a portable unit at £200 – is out of reach for families already counting every penny.
France, Italy and Spain are already feeling the strain. Wildfires have torn through the south of France, forcing thousands to evacuate. In Italy, the health ministry has activated emergency protocols for hospitals. Spain’s labour unions are demanding mandatory breaks for outdoor workers. This is the reality of a planet that has warmed by 1.1°C since the industrial revolution. The UK is not immune. In 2022, a similar heatwave caused 2,803 excess deaths among over-65s. Most of those deaths were in deprived areas.
Yet the government’s response has been muted. The UK Health Security Agency has issued a level 3 heat health alert, but there is no national plan for cooling centres or emergency wage subsidies for workers who cannot safely commute. The Trades Union Congress has called for a legal maximum temperature for workplaces, currently absent. The government says it is “monitoring the situation.”
This is not about a few glorious days of sunshine. It is about the structural inequalities that turn extreme weather into a killer. The rich can afford to flee. The rest of us must sweat it out. And as the planet continues to heat, these events will become more frequent and more brutal. The question is: will we prepare, or will we just wait for the next red alert and the next grim death toll?
Stay cool, stay safe, and check on your neighbours. The heatwave will pass. The economic damage and the scars on our health service may last much longer.
