The numbers are stark. France’s recent heatwave has claimed over 1,500 lives. A tragedy. But here in Westminster, the whispers are about resilience. Our system held. Theirs didn’t.
Sources inside Whitehall are unusually smug. Briefing that the UK’s crisis management was “textbook.” The contrast with Paris is deliberate. Macron’s government was slow to activate cooling centres. Hospitals overwhelmed. Meanwhile, NHS trusts had protocols in place within hours.
Let’s be clear. This isn’t gloating. It’s a political reality. The Tories smell an opportunity. Briefings from Number 10 stress “British pragmatism” vs “French bureaucracy.” One senior minister told me: “We learn from disasters. They just have them.”
Polling shows the public agrees. A snap YouGov survey finds 68% think the government handled the heatwave well. Compare that to Macron’s approval rating, which has dropped five points. The Prime Minister’s team are already framing this as proof of competence. A dry run for winter, they say.
But there’s a knife edge here. NHS capacity is still stretched. One wrong move and the narrative flips. The opposition is watching. Labour’s health spokesperson has demanded an inquiry into “preparedness gaps.” They’re trying to puncture the government’s bulletproof vest.
The real game? The climate crisis. This heatwave is a warning. The UK’s response worked this time. But next year? The summer after? The Tories are betting that institutional memory will save them. But institutions have short memories. And the backbench are restless.
I hear rumblings of a new select committee on extreme weather resilience. Chaired by a former minister. Someone with an eye on the leadership. They want to be seen as the person who kept Brits safe. Cynical? Yes. But that’s how the game works.
For now, the PM walks tall. His team are already comparing the UK’s response to France’s in private. It’s a wedge. “Competent Conservatives vs chaotic Continentals.” Expect to hear that line repeated.
But the heatwave doesn’t care about politics. The mercury will rise again. And when it does, the machine must work. If it falters, the smugness will evaporate. And the knives will come out.
