Many People Are Asking When It Will Rain

Half of England and all of Wales are officially in drought, wildfires have burned through parts of the Cairngorms, Suffolk and the Isle of Wight, and reservoirs are running low. Farmers have warned of possible food shortages, and the Royal Horticultural Society is considering moving its hydrangeas to cope with the heat. Many people are asking when it will rain.

The Guardian has covered how the climate crisis is supercharging European wildfires, the impossible choices firefighters face, heat deaths in England, and air conditioning disparities. Other outlets have offered a different impression of this extreme weather. Over the last week, articles, mostly in the Telegraph, suggested Britain should abandon net zero, that wildfires were exacerbated by environmental groups, and that climate "catastrophism" is a "leftist weapon" to "destroy capitalism.

This came as England entered its fourth heatwave of 2026. Bob Ward, policy and communications director at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change, discussed how a minority is shaping political debate and thwarting the transition, despite most people wanting more climate action. Other headlines: Rapists, child sexual abusers and groomers will be excluded from early release plans to ease prison overcrowding, in an intervention by Andy Burnham. Nigel Farage admitted he was in talks to return to lead Reform UK months before the 2024 election, casting doubt on claims he was not involved in politics when he received a £5m gift.

Spain's Ceuta leader accused Morocco of helping fuel the crisis, describing border crossings as an attack on Spain's territorial integrity, "if not orchestrated, at least encouraged or permitted by Morocco. Donald Trump said new US-Iran talks are the "last chance" for a deal to avoid escalation of US strikes. A plastic manufacturer in northern England faces potential legal action over benzene emissions, a carcinogen with no safe level.