Climate change: Last decade UK's 'second hottest in 100 years' - BBC News

A series of new records for high temperature were broken in the UK in 2019, concluding a record-breaking decade, the Met Office has said.

The last decade was the second hottest in the past 100 years in the UK, with eight new high-temperature records set.

Four new UK records were set last year alone, including the highest winter and summer temperatures ever recorded.

Dr Mark McCarthy, from the Met Office in Exeter, said it was "a consequence of our warming climate".

The 2010s were the second hottest and second wettest of the "cardinal" decades (those spanning years ending 0-9) in the last 100 years of UK records.

In both cases, the 2010s were slightly behind 2000-2009, which holds the record for the hottest and wettest decade.

Record-breaking 2019

Last year, a maximum of 21.2C was reached on 26 February, in London - the hottest February day ever recorded.

On 25 July, temperatures then reached 38.7C in Cambridge - the UK's highest-ever recorded temperature.

The third record-breaker for 2019 was for the highest daily minimum temperature in February - a temperature of 13.9C recorded on 23 February in the Scottish Highlands.

The hottest December day is also likely to have been exceeded last week, with a provisional temperature of 18.7C recorded in the Highlands of Scotland on 28 December - although the figure still needs to be validated.

• New maximum temperature for December recorded in Highlands
• Record-breaking heatwave temperature confirmed

Overall, the UK was warmer, wetter and sunnier than average in 2019, the Met Office said.

It said 2019 was provisionally the 11th warmest year on record, with a mean average temperature of 9.42C, putting it just outside the top 10 - all of which have all occurred since 2002.

Across the decade - from 2010 to 2019 - other record monthly temperatures were recorded on 1 October 2011 in Kent (29.9C) and 1 November 2015 in Ceredigion (22.4C).

Record highest daily minimums were reached on 25 January 2016 in County Londonderry (13.1C) and 19 April 2018 (15.9C) in Greater London.

Also in the record books was the coldest March day on record, when the "Beast from the East" struck in 2018.

However, Dr McCarthy, the head of the Met Office's National Climate Information Centre (NCIC), said it was "notable how many of these extreme records have been set in the most recent decade".

He also noted "how many more of them are reflecting high rather than low temperature extremes".

He warned the trend was likely to continue, adding: "We would expect these sorts of records subsequently to be broken in the future."

He said: "We are expecting to see an increase in winter rainfall, so wetter winters and drier summers - but we could still experience some dry winters and wet summers."

A government spokesman said climate change was a "national priority" and it was committed to increasing the momentum around environmental action.

"Since 1990, we have reduced our emissions by over 40% while growing the economy by over two thirds.

"But we are determined to do more to increase the momentum and drive ambitious action both in the run up to and at this year's COP26 talks in Glasgow."

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2020-01-03 06:38:23Z
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Met Office: Last decade UK's 'second hottest in 100 years' - BBC News

A series of new records for high temperature were broken in the UK in 2019, concluding a record-breaking decade, the Met Office has said.

The last decade was the second hottest in the past 100 years in the UK, with eight new high-temperature records set.

Four new UK records were set last year alone, including the highest winter and summer temperatures ever recorded.

Dr Mark McCarthy, head of the National Climate Information Centre, said it was "a consequence of our warming climate".

Record-breaking 2019

Last year, a maximum of 21.2C was reached on 26 February, in London - the hottest February day ever recorded.

On 25 July, temperatures then reached 38.7C in Cambridge - the UK's highest-ever recorded temperature.

The third record-breaker for 2019 was for the highest daily minimum temperature in February - a temperature of 13.9C recorded on 23 February in the Scottish Highlands.

The hottest December day is also likely to have been exceeded last week, with a provisional temperature of 18.7C recorded in the Highlands of Scotland on 28 December - although the figure still needs to be validated.

• New maximum temperature for December recorded in Highlands
• Record-breaking heatwave temperature confirmed

Overall, the UK was warmer, wetter and sunnier than average in 2019, the Met Office said.

It said 2019 was provisionally the 11th warmest year on record, with a mean average temperature of 9.42C, putting it just outside the top 10 - all of which have all occurred since 2002.

Across the decade - from 2010 to 2019 - other record monthly temperatures were recorded on 1 October 2011 in Kent (29.9C) and 1 November 2015 in Ceredigion (22.4C).

Record highest daily minimums were reached on 25 January 2016 in County Londonderry (13.1C) and 19 April 2018 (15.9C) in Greater London.

Also in the record books was the coldest March day on record, when the "Beast from the East" struck in 2018.

However, Dr McCarthy said it was "notable how many of these extreme records have been set in the most recent decade and how many more of them are reflecting high rather than low-temperature extremes".

He warned the trend was likely to continue, adding: "We would expect these sorts of records subsequently to be broken in the future."

He said: "We are expecting to see an increase in winter rainfall, so wetter winters and drier summers - but we could still experience some dry winters and wet summers."

A government spokesman said climate change was a "national priority" and it was committed to increasing the momentum around environmental action.

"Since 1990, we have reduced our emissions by over 40% while growing the economy by over two thirds.

"But we are determined to do more to increase the momentum and drive ambitious action both in the run up to and at this year's COP26 talks in Glasgow."

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2020-01-03 06:08:07Z
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Britain’s astonishing Tempest fighter jet doubles workforce to beat Euro plane to skies - Express.co.uk

The hi-tech, “sixth generation” aircraft being developed by Britain in conjunction with Sweden will replace the ageing Typhoon (originally called the Eurofighter), and will be equipped with laser and hypersonic weapons. The plane will be accompanied into battle by a mini squadron of semi-autonomous drone-like “wingmen”. It has understandably be hailed as a “game changer” by industry experts. The four international companies leading the project BAE Systems, the UK arm of Leonardo of Italy, European missile maker MDBA, and Rolls Royce - collectively known as Team Tempest - are all stepping up recruitment in 2020 in order to finalise their business cases by December, with the total UK workforce set to more than double from 1,000 to 2,500 by 2021.

Related articles

And, with Brexit looming, the Tempest is being seen by some as a test of Britain’s ambition to be a major player on the international stage.

Detractors claim looming budget cuts mean the pioneering Tempest Fighter Jet project may have to be merged with the rival European scheme spearheaded by France and Germany.

This year is likely to see a wide-ranging defence review which will consider Britain’s place in the world after Brexit - with the Financial Times reporting the Ministry of Defence is facing a £15billion shortfall in its equipment budget over the next decade.

As such, the newspaper reports some experts are questioning whether the UK can actually afford such an ambitious project, despite partnerships with Italy and Sweden.

The Tempest Fighter Jet is scheduled to be deployed by 2035 (Image: BAE)

A GCI image of the Tempest Fighter Jet (Image: BAE)

Team Tempest will ensure the UK has the capability to sit at the top table in an international collaborate programme

Andrew Kennedy

“Team Tempest will ensure the UK has the capability to sit at the top table in an international collaborate programme.”

Speaking to Express.co.uk last year, Mr Kennedy said: “We’re all hugely excited to be involved in Team Tempest.

“We want to make the Tempest as iconic as the Spitfire.

“This has the potential to be a revolutionary aircraft, a real game-changer.”

READ MORE: Watch out, Iran! Awesome power of UK's laser-wielding Tempest fighter

BAE's graphic offers details of the project (Image: BAE)

Related articles

The suggestion is the project may need to merged with the rival Future Combat Air System being developed by France, Germany and Spain.

Privately executives in both projects have admitted there will be pressure to merge - but the longer they remain separate, the more difficult such a move would be.

However, Express.co.uk understands the MoD does not envisage any merger of the two projects.

Andrew Kennedy, strategic campaigns director in BAE Systems’ Air division, said: “We have to give the Government confidence we are working toward a viable international partnership.

“They have to be confident we are doing something affordable, capable and delivered on time.

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Leonardo is involved in Team Tempest (Image: Leonardo)

The Tempest Fighter Jet will have semi-autonomous "wingmen" (Image: Leonardo)

“The plan is to introduce this ‘sixth generation’ combat aircraft into service in the mid-2030s, in time to replace the Eurofighter Typhoon fleet, which presently provides a fully manned capability for a number of air forces.”

A Leonardo spokesman told Express.co.uk today: “Work is proceeding at pace to meet the ambitious timescale for Tempest, which is expected to go into-service in 2035.

“Leonardo in the UK is already hard at work developing some of the advanced technologies which will be needed to face the threats of the future.”

Tempest is great news for engineering in the UK: it’s a fantastic career opportunity for current and future employees in all of the companies involved, both directly and through the supply chain.

A timeline of the Tempest Fighter Jet (Image: BAE)

“Leonardo employs around 7,000 people across the UK, 67 percent of whom hold highly skilled positions.”

Francis Tusa, editor of Defence Analysis, said of the project’s overall workforce: “To get this number of jobs this early, that is pretty significant.

“If you want back to the early 200s, BAE Systems would have had 3,000 people working on Typhoon.

“But at this stage of the game to have 2,500 research engineers, that is big.”

The Tempest Fighter Jet would be a huge leap forward (Image: RAF)

Tempest is regarded as crucial in order to secure the UK’s combat air sector, which is worth £6billion annually, and which has made up in excess of 80 percent of defence experts over the course of the last decade.

Neither the French nor the Germans are keen for the British to be involved, with

concerns about a repeat of the situation involving the A400M military transport aircraft, which has been beset by problems as a result of numerous demands from different partners.

One executive involved in the Future Combat Air System saying: “If we open the door to the British, the Scandinavians, the Italians, we will do another A400M and it will be a disaster.”

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2020-01-02 11:48:00Z
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China reportedly suspends UK stock exchange link over politics - Aljazeera.com

China has temporarily blocked planned cross-border listings between the Shanghai and London stock exchanges because of political tensions with the United Kingdom, five sources told the Reuters news agency.

Suspending the Shanghai-London Stock Connect scheme casts a shadow over the future of a project meant to build ties between the UK and China, help Chinese firms expand their investor base and give mainland investors access to UK-listed companies.

More:

The sources, who include public officials and people working on potential Shanghai-London deals, cited politics as the reason behind the suspension.

Two of them highlighted the UK's stance over the Hong Kong protests and one pointed to remarks over the detention of a now-former staff member at its consulate in Hong Kong.

All five sources have been involved in talks with Chinese officials and spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to speak about the matter publicly.

British companies and banks involved in the scheme are watching closely how recently-elected Prime Minister Boris Johnson approaches relations with Beijing and what stance he takes on Hong Kong, which has been roiled by protests.

China blames the Hong Kong unrest, heavily supported by an anti-government movement seeking to curb controls by Beijing, on interference by foreign governments including the United States and the UK.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission and the Shanghai Stock Exchange did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the London Stock Exchange and a spokeswoman for the UK's finance ministry declined to comment.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a faxed statement that it was not aware of the specifics, but added that it "hopes the UK can provide a fair and unbiased business environment for Chinese companies that invest in the UK and create the appropriate conditions for both countries to carry out practical cooperation smoothly in various fields".

Stock Connect, which began operating last year, was devised as a way of improving the UK's relationship with the world's second-biggest economy and was seen as a significant step by China to open up its capital markets as well as linking them globally.

China chill

Huatai Securities was the first Chinese company to use the scheme in May, with SDIC Power set to become the second in December with a listing of financial instruments known as global depository receipts (GDRs) in London representing 10 percent of its share capital.

However, the alternative energy operator's deal was postponed at an advanced stage, with SDIC Power citing market conditions as the main reason.

Five sources told Reuters, SDIC Power's deal was halted because of Beijing's suspension of Stock Connect.

GDRs are certificates issued by financial institutions that allow a company's shares to be traded on an overseas exchange.

Other hopefuls such as China Pacific Insurance, which one of the sources said could have launched a deal as early as the first quarter of 2020, have also been told to put their cross-border listing plans on ice, they added.

SDIC Power and China Pacific Insurance did not respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported.

"It's not only a big blow to the companies looking to broaden the investor base via listings in London, but also to China's links with global markets," one source, who has worked on one of the GDR deals, told Reuters.

The trouble with the scheme comes at a bad time for the UK, which is eager to build ties with non-European Union countries as it prepares to leave the bloc.

The London exchange was set for its worst year in terms of new listings in 10 years as of December 4, Refinitiv data showed, with political volatility and concerns over the UK's EU divorce crimping stock market fundraising.

SOURCE: Reuters news agency

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2020-01-02 10:23:00Z
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New Year's Eve: Revellers across the UK usher in 2020 - BBC News

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Revellers across the UK have rung in the start of a new decade, with fireworks displays in London, Edinburgh and other major cities.

In London, some 12,000 fireworks lit up the capital's skyline.

Edinburgh hosted what it promised would be the UK's "biggest street party" as part of the city's Hogmanay celebrations.

Firework shows were also held in other cities including Manchester, Cardiff, Newcastle, Inverness and Nottingham.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in his new year message, said the UK was on the verge of a "new chapter" in its history and promised to "finish the job" by delivering Brexit within weeks.

He said he hoped the country would "move forward united" after it leaves the EU on 31 January.

Meanwhile, the Archbishop of Canterbury will use his message - which will be broadcast later - to suggest that Britons should make a "heroic new year's resolution" to contact someone they have drifted apart from.

In London, Big Ben's chimes sounded the start of the display, despite them being silent this year while renovation work is completed.

Around 100,000 revellers packed into the streets around Victoria Embankment as the roar of football anthems such as Three Lions kicked off the new decade, with the festivities providing a prelude to the Euro 2020 football tournament.

Music from artists including Stormzy, Wiley and Bastille also featured in a display London Mayor Sadiq said would be the best the capital "has ever seen".

"We may be leaving the European Union, but we're not leaving Europe. So tonight's fireworks celebrate us as a global city, us as a European city," he added.

He stressed that London and the UK need to be brought "together again" in the 2020s.

"I'm not pretending that fireworks and one night can do that, but I think it's really important [that] we celebrate, tonight, some great things about our city and our country," he said.

On social media, some praised the spectacular display while others complained that a build-up of smoke obscured the view.

The Metropolitan Police said there were 15 arrests at the celebrations in central London, including two arrests for offences involving fireworks and one for sexual assault.

In Edinburgh, more than 3,600 fireworks were let off from the castle as the Scottish capital celebrated Hogmanay.

Musical artists including DJ Mark Ronson, Idlewild, Rudimental and Marc Almond performed on stages throughout the city centre.

Tens of thousands of people attended the party, which extended across more than a dozen streets in the city.

Media playback is unsupported on your device

The first places to welcome 2020 included the tiny Pacific island of Kiribati, neighbouring parts of Samoa and the Chatham Islands.

Auckland in New Zealand was the first major city to ring in the new decade, with thousands welcoming 2020 at a fireworks display at the city's Sky Tower.

The traditional fireworks display in Sydney Harbour also went ahead, despite calls for it to be cancelled due to Australia's bushfire crisis.

European cities, including Paris, Berlin, Madrid and Athens, have also seen in the new year with firework displays.

The uninhabited Baker Island and Howland Island, on the other side of the International Date Line, were the last to leave 2019 behind.

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2020-01-01 00:00:49Z
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UK to press Cyprus on 'distressing' teen gang rape case - CNN

The 19-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had said she was attacked by 12 Israeli youths on July 17 at the Pambos Napa Rocks hotel in the resort of Ayia Napa, where she was staying.

But 10 days later she retracted her statement and police arrested her. She was found guilty of causing public mischief on Monday and now faces up to a year in jail.

"The UK is seriously concerned about the fair trial guarantees in this deeply distressing case and we will be raising the issue with the Cypriot authorities," the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a statement.

The woman spent more than a month in prison before being granted bail. Her passport has been held to prevent her leaving the country.

The woman's lawyer, Michael Polak, earlier told CNN his client had been pressured into retracting her allegations, and that she was initially denied legal representation.

"She wasn't allowed a lawyer, which is against European law, she didn't have a translator, she was suffering from PTSD," he said.

In court, the woman insisted that she was raped but had been pressured into changing her account by Cypriot police, Reuters reported.

The woman told the court that she had had a consensual relationship with one of the youths, and was in a room with him when the others appeared, Reuters said. She alleged that she was held down and raped.

Judge Michalis Papathanasiou, however, accepted the prosecution's case that the woman fabricated the claims because she felt "ashamed" after finding out some of the Israelis had filmed her having sex on their mobile phones, Reuters reported.

None of the youths was called to give evidence. The judge refused to allow any evidence about whether the woman was raped, her lawyers said.

Following the UK's foreign office statement Tuesday a Cypriot government spokesperson said Cyprus was "an orderly state" with "constitutionally established institutions and separation of powers."

"The Government does not intervene in cases brought before the competent Courts of the Republic of Cyprus, nor does it comment on positions or allegations which are raised with respect to cases still pending before the Courts," the spokesperson said in a statement.

"The Government has full confidence in the Justice system and the Courts of the Republic of Cyprus, which should be left unfettered to implement state laws and deliver justice."

Nir Yaslovitzh, a lawyer representing the young Israelis, applauded the court's decision and said he sought an appropriate punishment on "the girl, who refuses to this day to take responsibility for the horrible act she has done against the boys."

He added that a civil process would take place to compensate his clients.

Rights activists say the case has been mishandled by Cypriot officials. On Monday, protesters from the Network Against Violence Against Women gathered outside the Famagusta District Court, many wearing white scarves portraying lips sewn together.

Sentencing has been adjourned until January 7.

Polak said the woman would be appealing the case to the Cyprus Supreme Court and, should this fail, to the European Court of Human Rights.

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2019-12-31 13:51:00Z
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UK and US considered Nigeria naval blockade over Saro-Wiwa execution - BBC News

The UK and US considered a navy-backed oil embargo against Nigeria, following the 1995 execution of writer and activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, a document released by the UK government reveals.

Saro-Wiwa and eight other campaigners from the Ogoni ethnic group were hanged on 10 November 1995.

They had been found guilty by a secret military tribunal of the murder of four Ogoni chiefs by a mob.

The nine denied the charge and said they had been framed.

Saro-Wiwa led mass protests against oil pollution in Nigeria's Ogoniland.

The protests were seen as a major threat to Nigeria's military ruler at the time, Gen Sani Abacha, and Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell.

• Fishermen at risk amidst the oil

• Militants cripple Nigeria's oil sector

The executions led to Nigeria suspension from the Commonwealth.

The UK's then Prime Minister, John Major, called it a "fraudulent trial" and described the executions as "judicial murder".

Notes of a meeting between Mr Major and US President Bill Clinton, nearly three weeks after the executions, show the steps the leaders contemplated to isolate Nigeria.

The two men met while Mr Clinton was on a visit to the UK.

According to the notes, the UK believed that an oil embargo would "only be effective" if done through the UN Security Council and "could only be made to work by a naval blockade".

Such steps would result in "wrecking Nigeria's economy" as it was heavily reliant on oil exports.

'Sycophants surround Abacha'

Mr Clinton agreed, but said the US would only implement an embargo if "all other parties" were willing to do so, pointing out that sanctions would be vetoed by China if brought before the UN Security Council.

There had been pleas from across the world for Nigeria's military leader at the time, Sani Abacha, to exercise clemency, but Western governments had struggled to reach the leader.

Mr Clinton's special envoy to Nigeria, Donald T McHenry, had been unable to see Abacha and concluded that he was "almost wholly insulated from the outside world" and "information was filtered by sycophants: they had no idea of genuine opinion within Nigeria or internationally".

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The hanging of the Ogoni campaigners took place just as Commonwealth heads of state were meeting in New Zealand for their biennial gathering.

The UK issued a statement condemning the executions, but it was South African President Nelson Mandela who led the international criticism.

He called for Nigeria to be suspended from the Commonwealth "at once" and that the suspension should not be lifted until the country had shown "much quicker" progress in returning from military to civilian rule. All political prisoners should be released, he argued.

In this, Mandela was backed by his Zimbabwean counterpart Robert Mugabe and Kenya's Daniel arap Moi, but the suggestion was criticised by a number of other African leaders, including Ghana's President Jerry Rawlings.

Mandela outspoken

The Commonwealth went ahead with the suspension, but Mandela was determined that the measures should not end there.

He continued his international engagement, making phone calls to Mr Clinton and keeping in touch with Mr Major by phone after the Commonwealth summit ended.

In demanding strong action Mandela appeared to have been isolated from the rest of his government.

Newspaper reports at the time indicate that then Deputy President Thabo Mbeki and the Deputy Foreign Minister, Aziz Pahad, had been reluctant to pursue sanctions against Nigeria.

The UK, together with the European Union (EU), took a number of steps.

Ambassadors to Nigeria were recalled, military training and aid were suspended and an EU-wide arms embargo was instituted.

While Mr Major was willing to consider wider economic sanctions, he was unwilling to do so alone.

The UK accounted for just 1% of Nigeria's oil exports, while the US took 40%.

As a result, Mr Major told Mr Clinton, "we were not well placed to press for [sanctions]".

The UK also had a good deal to lose if Nigeria retaliated.

Pressure from Shell

There was a considerable British expatriate community in Nigeria and UK investments in the country totalled between $3.9bn and $6.5bn (£3bn and £5bn).

This included Shell, which extracted half of the country's oil and was contemplating building a major natural gas project.

The Shell chairman at the time, Cornelius Herkströter, wrote to Mr Major at the height of the controversy, pointing out just how important these investments were.

He argued that the gas liquefaction plant would "make a major contribution to environmental improvement in the region" since it would reduce the need for the flaring of gas.

In the end, the problem of getting UN Security Council approval for an oil embargo appeared to have blocked progress on wider sanctions.

Nigeria was only re-admitted to the Commonwealth in May 1999, on the day on which the country's new civilian government assumed power - ending three-and-a-half years of isolation.

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2019-12-31 12:02:19Z
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