London Mayor Backs Maximum Workplace Temperature Limit Amid Extreme Heat

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has backed a proposal to set a maximum temperature limit in workplaces to protect workers from heatwaves that are increasingly hitting Britain. The support comes amid growing pressure for the government to tighten occupational safety regulations. According to a recent report by the UK Met Office, extreme weather conditions have now become the ‘new normal’ due to the impact of climate change. The country’s lack of preparedness is evident in the struggle of public facilities, including housing, schools, hospitals, and transport networks, every time heatwaves recur throughout this summer. A spokesperson for Sadiq Khan stated that the mayor supports the idea of a temperature limit because extreme heat is a reality increasingly faced by Londoners. Although he has launched extreme weather adaptation initiatives in the capital, Khan does not have the legal authority to enforce such a temperature rule independently. Pressure on the government is expected to intensify after Green Party Member of Parliament Hannah Spencer plans to introduce a bill on workplace temperature limits to parliament. Previously, campaign groups and trade unions such as Unison and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) have repeatedly demanded legal certainty. They propose a maximum indoor temperature of 30 degrees Celsius for ordinary workers, and 27 degrees Celsius for workers performing strenuous physical activity. The health impact of such weather phenomena has been recorded as very significant. For instance, the heatwave that occurred last June is estimated to have triggered around 440 additional deaths per day in England during its three-day peak.