The 2025 meteorological summer in the UK was the warmest on record. This came less from heatwaves setting new temperate peaks and more from steady warmth throughout June, July & August. Overall it was sunnier and drier than usual in the UK but not to any significant degree. As a result, whilst the 1st principal component confirms the summer can be regarded as a “good summer”, it was a long way from being an exceptional summer like 1976 & 1995.
UK Weather Trends #36 – Spring 2025
Spring 2025 in the UK was both the hottest & sunniest on record as well as the 5th driest. For sunshine, 2025 was even more extraordinary than the exceptionally sunny spring in 2020 and was the result of 3 very sunny months in a row. For temperature, there was no doubt in my mind this time the data was correct unlike last year when I questioned whether spring 2024 was in fact the warmest in record. The Met Office has not corrected the record so apparently it was.
UK Weather Trends #35 – Winter 2025
Winter 2025 in the UK was unremarkable. Last year I explained I believe our winters are following a steady trend to warmer and wetter winters which began in the early 1980s. The data for the winter just gone doesn’t my conclusions.
UK Weather Trends #34 – Annual Temperatures in 2024
The 2024 calendar year was the 4th hottest year on record in the UK. Last year, I used a Control Chart to conclude “a step change upwards (in UK temperatures) has taken place but the pace of change is not yet clear“. I am now less confident in my conclusion after updating with 2024 data, especially when I look at temperature trends based on the meteorological year of December to November instead.
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Pay Gap Trends #8A – Is a Smaller Pay Gap Good News?
The gender pay gap in the UK continues to narrow in 2024. The good news is the pay gap is narrowing at a faster rate since 2017 when Gender Pay Gap Reporting (GPGR) for employers become mandatory. The bad news is women are not progressing up the pay scale and are working longer hours, men today are worse off than their fathers were 20 years ago and the smaller pay gap is simply the by-product of wage compression induced by above inflation rises in the minimum wage. This is a sobering picture which tells me on balance, a smaller pay gap is not good news.
This article is part A of a 2-part blog. Part B will be published at a later date.
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UK Weather Trends #33 – Autumn 2024
The UK autumn in 2024 was essentially unremarkable and mostly consistent with the step change in autumnal climate seen 25 years ago.
UK Weather Trends #32 – Summer 2024
The 2024 meteorological summer in the UK was unremarkable on all weather variables. In fact 2024 was so unremarkable that it is in fact the most “normal” summer of the last 114 years when I compare the data to the last 50 years which I regard as “living memory”.
UK Weather Trends #31 – Spring 2024
Spring 2024 in the UK was the hottest on record. In some ways this is surprising given it was also the 10th dullest and 6th wettest spring on record which is inconsistent with trends over last 25 years and with the typical correlations seen in spring. With any other dataset, I would ask for a check on the temperature data to see if it is correct.
UK Weather Trends #30 – Winter 2024
Winter 2024 in the UK was the 5th sunniest & 8th wettest on record. A year ago I postulated UK winters were entering a new era of being warm, wet & sunny. I am now certain this is the case and my favoured hypothesis is that our winters are following a steady trend which began in the early 1980s.
UK Weather Trends #29 – Annual Temperatures in 2023
The 2023 calendar year was the 2nd hottest year on record in the UK just behind the hottest year ever in 2022. Last year, I showed how a technique known as a Control Chart could be used to decide if the UK is now in a new warming trend and after adding 2023, my answer is now “a step change upwards has taken place but the pace of change is not yet clear“.
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