Tories distracted by leadership race are “fiddling while Britain boils”, Labour says

Angela Rayner has said ministers are “fiddling while Britain boils”, accusing members of the government of being “consumed with their own party infighting” instead of focusing on soaring temperatures facing Britons.

The deputy Labour leader this afternoon described the administration as a “zombie government” that is “distracted by self-indulgent fantasy economics rather than preparing for a crisis or taking action” and urged ministers to “get a grip”.

The Met Office has issued an amber extreme heat warning across much of England and Wales from Sunday to Tuesday, with temperatures expected to exceed 40°C at their peak in southern, central and eastern areas of England.

Rayner added: “Many working people don’t have air conditioning at work, and we can’t just expect staff to just crack on given the potentially serious – even deadly – implications. Ministers should act now to ensure everyone has the right to work in a safe and healthy environment.”

The NHS and emergency services are preparing for a surge in demand as Britain expects to hit record-breaking temperatures this weekend. The heatwave comes as new figures showed staff absences at NHS hospitals in England are at their highest in almost three months amid a surge in Covid infections.

Fellow Labour frontbencher Ed Miliband warned today that “extreme weather is one manifestation” of the climate crisis, arguing that the Tory leadership election has been an “appalling spectacle when it comes to the climate emergency”.

Tory leadership candidates Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat have said they would either delay or revise the UK government’s net-zero target while Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt and Liz Truss have committed to keeping it.

The Shadow Climate Change and Net Zero Secretary accused candidates of “seeking to turn back from taking on the biggest long-term threat we face” and said we need a government that will “take seriously the threat of the climate emergency”.

In a letter to Kit Malthouse ahead of a COBRA meeting today, Rayner and Miliband urged the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to ensure that public safety is prioritised in a planned response to the heatwave.

The pair called for the government to issue guidance on safe indoor working temperatures and to make sure that employers allow their staff to take more frequent breaks. Currently, there is no guidance on high temperatures at work.

Boris Johnson triggered a Tory leadership election when he announced that he would stand down last week. The timetable for the leadership election was confirmed on Monday evening, with the final result expected on September 5th.

Hopefuls seeking to replace the Prime Minister have undergone two rounds of voting by Conservative MPs. The list of potential Tory leaders was reduced to five earlier today after Suella Braverman was eliminated from the contest.

Below is the full text of the letter to Kit Malthouse.

Dear Rt Hon Kit Malthouse MP,

We are writing in light of the current extreme weather which could see record temperatures of 40°C over the next week, and the news that you will be hosting a COBRA meeting on this today.

The extreme weather could cause risk to life, will impact on workplace safety and will affect our critical national infrastructure. As the Minister with oversight of the Government’s response to national emergencies, we would like assurances that ministers are taking appropriate measures to ensure the British public’s safety in this unprecedented heat.

The Met Office has already issued an amber weather warning to parts of the country over the next week, and it is being reported that a ‘Level 4’ health alert could be imposed. The Health Security Agency has said in this scenario, there could be risk of “illness and death may occur among the fit and healthy” as well as vulnerable groups. All ambulance trusts have declared the highest state of alert, warning of “extreme pressures” as the heatwave unfolds. There will be acute consequences for the workplace, and some workers may find themselves working in unsafe conditions. We are also already seeing rail delays due to the heat.

The country must not be led by a government that is asleep at the wheel. Given the chaos over the past week and the potential distraction of a leadership election involving many key ministers, we are asking for clarity on:

What plans do you have to ensure workplace safety during this heatwave? Will you issue guidance on safe indoor working temperatures, ensuring employers allow their staff to work flexibly and take breaks? With temperatures expected to soar to the thirties this week, we are deeply concerned that with intervention, workers’ health will be put at risk.

What plans are you making to protect the UK’s critical national infrastructure against extreme heat, particularly our train networks, roads, energy and telecommunications infrastructure?

What steps are you taking to mitigate the long-term risk of extreme heat, given that UK Climate Projections show a hot summer like 2018 and 2022 are likely to occur every other year by 2050? Can ministers update Parliament on what progress is being made to prepare the UK’s homes, workplaces, and infrastructure to adapt to more frequent heatwaves?

The first duty of the Government is to protect the British people, including at work. Each new heatwave is yet another reminder both that we must rapidly upgrade our national infrastructure to meet this new reality, and of the pressing debt we owe to future generations to tackle the climate emergency. If we do not rapidly act to bring down carbon emissions, we will leave our country poorer, more insecure, and more dangerous for future generations.

The British public deserves strong action to help get people through this unprecedented weather. We hope that appropriate measures are taken at today’s COBRA meeting to keep the British people safe, especially at work, and that ministers are not distracted given the chaos of the past week.

Yours sincerely,

Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero