The Continent is cooking. Red heat alerts are now in force across France, Italy and Spain, with thermometers pushing past 40C. For UK holidaymakers, the message is blunt: stay hydrated, avoid the midday sun, and check your travel insurance. The Foreign Office has updated its travel advice, warning of "extreme heat" and urging Brits to follow local guidance.
This isn’t just a weather story. It’s a political pressure cooker. The heatwave is exposing cracks in Europe’s infrastructure. Hospitals are on standby. Transport networks are buckling. In Italy, the government is facing calls to declare a state of emergency. The parallels with last summer’s deadly heatwaves are impossible to ignore.
For the UK, the immediate concern is travel disruption. Airlines and tour operators are scrambling to reassure customers. But the bigger question is what this means for the government’s net zero agenda. The Tories are already split on green policy. A long, hot summer will only intensify the row.
Whitehall sources tell me the Environment Agency is monitoring the situation closely. But there is a sense of fatalism. The UK is not immune. We saw 40C last July. Another extreme event is only a matter of time.
For now, the advice is simple: if you’re heading to the Med, prepare for a scorcher. And keep an eye on the polls. Voters will remember this summer.
