UK protesters decry climate change after record heat wave
Protesters in the UK came down on the streets of London and Glasgow on Saturday to demand faster action against climate change following the record-breaking temperatures that scorched the country this week.
The protesters led by activist groups including Stop Oil and Insulate Britain staged a sit-in demonstration in Parliament Square in London to call on the Conservative government to stop issuing new licences for oil and gas production, tax major polluters, and assist people in installing more energy-efficient heating in their homes, reports AP.
"Tuesday's extreme heatwave was a warning about what we will face when the climate collapses –- thousands of deaths, homes lost to wildfires and emergency services stretched to breaking point," said Indigo Rumbelow from Just Stop Oil.
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"We are so unprepared for extreme heat and it's only going to get worse."
The UK's Met Office weather agency recorded 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.5 degrees Fahrenheit) in England on Tuesday, the highest-ever temperature registered in a country ill-prepared for such extreme heat.
British summers are typically quite mild and very few homes, schools or small businesses have air-conditioning.
Major train networks were immobilised by the heat wave, airport runways damaged, and 15 fire departments around the country notified major incidents.
Tuesday was the busiest day for firemen since World War II, according to the London Fire Brigade.
Climate activists in Glasgow staged a "die-in" protest to demand urgent action for tackling climate change.
Protesters laid on the ground in one of the city's busiest shopping areas, covered in white sheets with "causes of death" including heat stress, famine and water scarcity.
"We've been sounding the alarm about the global climate emergency for years," said Wolf Saanen, 39. "Now it has arrived on our shores, will those with the power to change things finally listen?"
Some climate groups warned they will stage more disruptive demonstrations in the autumn to bring Westminster — the seat of UK Parliament — to a standstill.
The groups also want the British government to reduce energy bills amid a soaring cost-of-living crisis that's expected to squeeze households further in the fall when the weather turns colder.
