As the country baked in record May temperatures, climate campaigners have said the UK government needs to urgently start installing air conditioning units in schools, care homes and places where vulnerable people live.
In 2022, when temperatures spiked above 40C (104F), about 3,000 people in Britain died of causes associated with heat. Studies show air conditioning can cut heat related deaths by 75%.
The world has warmed by about 1.5C relative to the preindustrial average, but Europe has warmed faster than any other continent. And the UK is ill-prepared; the majority of English homes overheat during the summer.
The overheating of British homes is likely to become a political problem, with pressure mounting for ministers to act. People are taking matters into their own hands, with an estimated 4m homes in the UK now having air conditioning, double the figure from three years ago.
Sam Alvis, associate director at the Institute for Public Policy Research, said: “Extreme weather is a growing political problem in the UK. As we’ve seen in Valencia, Los Angeles and elsewhere, when increasingly severe and frequent climate impacts strike, populists are quick to exploit public anger over a lack of preparation, using it to advance their own agenda and weaken support for climate action more broadly.”
In Valencia, populist politicians from the Vox party seized an opportunity in 2024 after torrential floods which left more than 220 people dead. Rather than mention the climate crisis, the rightwing party blamed the Spanish government’s inability to care for its citizens. In LA, in 2025, after wildfires razed neighbourhoods to the ground, Donald Trump and the Maga movement used it to lambast governor Gavin Newsom’s failure to agree to a 2020 plan by Trump to divert water from northern California to southern California. The tech billionaire Elon Musk also attacked the fire department, accusing it of being woke.
But now even political parties that used to call for less electricity-hungry methods over air conditioning accept that it is a necessity.
A Green party spokesperson said: “Consecutive governments – including the present Labour government – have failed to implement a mass home retrofit programme to keep our homes warm in winter, cool in summer and cut energy bills. While retrofitting must remain a priority, we will now need air conditioning for vulnerable people in hospitals, care homes, schools and households. As this will be required only during the hottest, sunniest months, there could be good pairing with solar energy.”
The issue with air conditioning units is they use a lot of electricity. There have recently been warnings along the east coast of the US, for example, as hot temperatures are leading everyone to switch on their AC, putting strain on the grid. In the past this has caused brownouts in New York City.
But, there is a solution: solar power. The sunniest states which have a lot of solar on the grid, such as Texas, have enjoyed more power stability during heatwaves. This also has the benefit of vastly reduced carbon emissions compared with using gas or other fossil fuels for the electricity used to power air conditioning.
Alvis added: “Extreme heat is affecting children’s exam performance, forcing NHS surgeries to be cancelled, and making it harder for farmers to grow food. It is no surprise that frustration is growing. Pairing long-term emissions cuts, such as rolling out solar panels on schools, with immediate adaptation measures, like air conditioning in classrooms, will both protect communities and strengthen public confidence in climate action.”
The government is trying to get the population off gas for their home heating and on to heat pumps. Air-to-air heat pumps can also be used as air conditioning units in summer, so policy experts have called for these to be adopted nationwide.
The government has been listening: while the grants for heat pump installation did not previously include those that also have a cooling function, the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, announced last November that these would now be covered. However, experts argue that the UK needs more energy on the grid to power these electric appliances.
Some climate campaigners argue that energy-hungry air con should only be used in an emergency, and in conjunction with community solutions such as cool spaces, such as the ones used in New York.
Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at Friends of the Earth said: “While the use of air conditioning is likely to rise, it is energy-intensive and expensive to run so should be prioritised for those who need it most. Critically though, it must be powered by green energy and not fossil fuels. With the climate getting increasingly hotter, the need to adapt properties so they can cope with extreme temperatures is becoming more urgent. Care homes and hospitals particularly need fitting with better ventilation and air conditioning, but the government should also invest in networks of cool spaces such as community centres and churches where people at risk can go to get some respite.”
He pointed out that British housing stock is badly insulated. There are other methods to keep the heat out, such as installing shutters and retrofitting homes with insulation.
Childs explained: “Britain’s poorly insulated homes are also badly prepared for the weather to come. Not only does insulation keep homes warm in winter, it helps them stay cooler in the summer.”
