Britain ‘to be as hot as Spain’ in just three decades, experts warn

LONDON will be as hot as Barcelona is now by 2050 with global warming set to bring dramatic changes to the world's major cities, expert analysis predicts.

The UK’s capital will feel similar to Barcelona's current climate, Edinburgh will feel like Paris' now and Cardiff will see similar conditions to Montevideo, according to shocking scientific research.

Scientists at Crowther Lab, Zürich, Switzerland, evaluated the world’s 520 major cities and their study reveals the dangerous threat of climate change.

Published in the journal PLOS One, the study suggests summers and winters in Europe will get warmer with average increases predicted to be 3.5C and 4.7C respectively.

This is the equivalent to a city shifting 620 miles further south by 2050.

Researchers warned Londoners could face extreme conditions, similar to the drought that hit Barcelona in 2008, and the UK could face major economic costs from importing £20million of drinking water.

The group of experts said pairing up cities is a way to help people visualise the impact global warming will have on their own lives.

Lead author of the research paper, Jean-Francois Bastin, said: "History has repeatedly shown us that data and facts alone do not inspire humans to change their beliefs or actions.

"The intangible nature of reporting on climate change fails to adequately convey the urgency of the issue - for example, it is hard to envision how 2C of warming, or changes in average temperature by 2100 might impact daily life.

"With this analysis from Crowther Lab scientists, we want to help people visualise the impact of climate change in their own city, within their lifetime."

Professor Mike Lockwood, from the University of Reading, said the study was useful in visualising climate change, but warned against overlooking huge infrastructure issues caused by changes to the climate of the world's cities.

Adding: “For example, bringing Barcelona's climate to London sounds like it could be a good thing - if you don't suffer from asthma or have a heart condition, that is - except London clay shrinks and is brittle if it gets too dry and then swells and expands when very wet.

“The greater swings in ground moisture expected in a warmer world would cause massive subsidence problems.

“As ever, there is destructive and unforeseen devil in the details of climate change."

The research projects what the climate will be like for major cities under an “optimistic” scenario where action is taken to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

But even so, they found that 22 per cent of major cities in the study will experience unprecedented conditions that major environments have not seen before.

Commenting on the study, Professor Richard Betts, from the Met Office Hadley Centre and University of Exeter, said: "This study helps to put climate change in the context of human experience - and more importantly, shows that many places will see entirely new climates that are outside of current human experience."

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