Top 10 hottest years in UK have happened since 1990

THE top 10 hottest years in Britain have occurred since 1990, the Met Office has confirmed as it issued a warning declaring: “Our climate in the UK is changing.”

Last year was the fifth warmest for the UK in records dating back more than a century.

Figures show the UK climate is warming, with average temperatures over the last decade around 0.8C above the 1961-1990 average, while the country has also had 8 per cent more rain and 6 per cent more sunshine.

The annual state of the UK climate report also revealed that, in contrast to this summer, most summers have been notably wetter over the last decade, with 20 per cent more rainfall compared with 1961-1990.

Nine of the 10 hottest years in the UK have happened since 2002 and 2017 was the fifth warmest on record, figures dating back to 1910 show.

The report also found average sea levels have risen around 1.4mm a year since the start of the 20th century – equivalent to a rise of about 16cm (6.3 inches) since 1900. And the Central England Temperature record reveals the 21st century has so far been warmer than the previous three centuries.

Dr Mark Mccarthy, manager of the Met Office National Climate Information Centre, said: “Our climate is changing, globally and here in the UK.

“People may not recall 2017 as having been a particularly warm year, with a relatively wet summer and snow in December.

“Despite this, when looking at the longer term perspective, 2017 was still more than 1C above the 1961-1990 baseline and ranks as the fifth warmest year overall for the UK.”

Last year’s extremes included a temperature high of 94.1F (34.5C) on June 21 at Heathrow, and a low of 8.6F (-13C) at Dalwhinnie, Scottish Highlands, on December 11 and Shawbury, Shropshire, on December 12.

The hottest ever temperature in the UK remains in Faversham, Kent, in 2003, when thermometers touched 101.3F (38.5C). Last Friday was tipped to beat that figure, but it fell short.

In 2017, the highest daily rainfall was 212.6mm (8.37 inches) in Ennerdale, Cumbria, on Christmas Eve, while the deepest snow recorded was 40cm (15.75 inches) in Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Wrexham, on December 11.