EBN- 2023 was provisionally the second-warmest year on record for the UK, with Wales and Northern Ireland having their respective warmest years in a series from 1884.
It means three of the five warmest years since 1884 have fallen in the last four years – along with 2020 and 2022 – in a sign of how the UK’s climate is changing.
The average mean temperature of 9.97C (49.95F) across the UK in 2023 puts it second only to 2022, which had an average of 10.03C (50.05F).
Met Office senior scientist Mike Kendon said: “The observations of the UK second-warmest climate are clear. Climate change is influencing UK temperature records over the long term.”
He added: “While our climate will remain variable, with periods of cold and wet weather, what we have observed over recent decades is a number of high temperature records tumbling.
“We expect this pattern to continue as our climate continues to change in the coming years as a result of human-induced climate change.”
The news may come as a surprise to those disappointed by the soggy or cool weather in July and August, or those who have battled recent thick snow in Scotland.
But eight of the 12 months last year were hotter than average, and June was also the hottest on record.
