Demand for air conditioner law grows amid heatwave deaths warning

Alarming new figures have sparked calls for changes from the Liberal Democrats

The Government must “heatproof the NHS”, campaigners have urged, after disturbing research found nearly 1,000 Brits died in hospitals and care homes last year due to soaring temperatures. House of Commons Library figures revealed that there were 496 deaths in care settings and 473 in hospitals, while more than 350 people died in their own homes during 2024.

The Liberal Democrats have called on ministers to avert future deaths by enacting tough laws that make it law to have air conditioning in care homes. The news came as parts of Britain are gearing up for another sizzling heatwave, with the Met Office predicting highs of 34°C in the UK, with Gloucester in the south-west of England set to be worst affected.

Northern Ireland is expected to escape the sweltering weather, with temperatures in Belfast going as high as 24°C on Tuesday and Wednesday, before falling to about 21°C by this weekend. Conditions are expected to be pleasant, with sunny intervals all around.

Amid this, Europe as well as the UK has been grappling with intense heat all summer, with pensioners suffering the most. Research from Imperial College London highlighted that during the period of June 23 to July 2, a staggering 88 per cent of those who died across the continent due to heat conditions were aged 65 or older.

While the data shows more than 470 fatalities from heat-related issues in hospitals, it doesn’t necessarily imply that the patients fell ill because of high indoor temperatures at NHS facilities. Nonetheless, Lib Dem health and social care spokesperson Helen Morgan has condemned the figures as “appalling”.

“It is appalling to think of our most vulnerable dying in what are meant to be safe settings simply because this country is ill-equipped to deal with heatwaves,” she remarked. “In light of soaring temperatures, the Government must ensure that our NHS and social care system are ready to keep people cool and well-cared for.

“This starts with a legal requirement for air conditioning or cooling heat pumps in care homes and a taskforce that delivers guaranteed cool wards in our hospitals, to prevent further unnecessary deaths.”

Morgan also highlighted a worrying rise in “overheating incidents” within NHS facilities. The Mirror reports that during 2023-24, there were 4,451 such cases – a sharp increase from the 2,980 incidents reported in 2016-17. These incidents are noted when temperatures in any hospital or healthcare setting climb above 26°C.

The Lib Dems are pushing for Westminster to make air-conditioning or alternative cooling systems in care homes mandatory. Sir Ed Davey’s party is also calling for a “crumbling hospitals taskforce” to find solutions to stop NHS buildings from overheating.

They argued it should be compulsory for hospital management to create “cool wards” for patients who are particularly vulnerable to heat. This proposal is an extension of the party’s earlier suggestion for community “cool hubs” – public spaces fitted with air-conditioning to support those at risk during periods of extreme heat.

Furthermore, former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown gave a stark warning about the resurgence of “60s-era poverty levels” and feared things could get worse. He cautioned: “This problem is getting worse. It’s going to worsen over the next few years because there’s a built-in escalator in the poverty figures because of the two-child rule.”

The Department of Health and Social Care dismissed the heat statistics as “alarmist”, with a spokesperson saying: “This reporting is misleading, alarmist and a wilful misrepresentation of data. The figures quoted refer to patients who have died from complications attributed to excess heat, not deaths caused by excess heat in NHS settings.”