Heatwave: Expert warns of 'unprecedented' hot period

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Councils have warned bin collections could be delayed this week due to extreme heat, with temperatures set to soar as high as 40C this weekend. On Tuesday, temperatures reached 31.4C, before dipping throughout the rest of the week.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) said during heatwaves staff should be allowed to start work earlier, or stay later.

They also said staff should be allowed to leave jackets and ties in the wardrobe and have regular breaks.

It is also calling for an absolute maximum indoor temperature of 30C (86F) – or 27C (81F) for strenuous jobs – to legally indicate when work should stop.

Unions have previously warned bin men could join striking railway workers, with Unite West Midlands sharing a picture on Twitter of workers gathered outside Coventry station waving the green flags of Mick Lynch’s National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers.

Tweeting in solidarity with the RMT’s 50,000 striking members, the union said: “Workers stand together. The backbone of this country the workers of this country deserve and demand better.

“We support the RMT union rail strike, enough is enough!

“Coventry Bin Strike workers join our rail colleagues in Coventry.”

Earlier this year, a dispute emerged involving Veolia refuse workers for Croydon council over pay.

The same issue is at the centre of a row involving refuse workers employed by Biffa in Wealden, East Sussex.

So far this week, South Oxfordshire District Council warned bin collections could have to stop because of the heat.

Residents are advised to leave bins out for two days after their scheduled collection if they are not emptied.

In addition, the Royal Borough of Greenwich in South East London said: “There will be some delays to waste collections this week due to the hot weather.

“Our staff are working hard and will catch up as quickly as possible.”

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On Wednesday, the Met Office extended an extreme heat amber warning into next week.

Meteorologists had yesterday issued an extreme heat warning for Sunday, but it was extended for all of Monday and Tuesday

They said: “Temperatures will rise again this weekend, most likely peaking on Monday or Tuesday, then most probably declining thereafter.

“Latest evidence supports the idea of a trend towards a slightly later onset of high temperatures.

“Some exceptionally high temperatures are possible both by day and by night; the cumulative effects of very warm nights (particularly in urbanised areas) and hot days are likely to bring widespread impacts to people and infrastructure.

“Although most likely less exceptional, it should also be noted that very warm to hot conditions are also probable across the majority of the rest of the UK.”

All ambulance services in England have been put on the highest level of alert with hot weather putting them under “extreme pressure”.

COVID absences among staff and ongoing delays in handing over patients to A&E are also contributing factors.

Several ambulance services confirmed they were on the highest level of alert after the Health Service Journal (HSJ) reported this was the case for all 10 in England.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it had been on the highest level of alert – known as REAP 4 – for a few months, while South Central Ambulance Service said it was also at REAP 4, which means trusts are under “extreme pressure”.

South Central added that it had also declared a critical incident “due to current pressures on our services”.

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