The UK just wrapped the warmest and sunniest year ever recorded.
The average temperature for the UK in 2025 was 10.09C, the warmest since modern weather observation started in 1884, according to new data released by the UK Met Office. The year also closed with 1,648.5 hours of sunshine, the most since the data started being collected in 1910.
England also set new annual temperature and sunshine records in 2025, the data show, while Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland saw record or near-records for high temperatures and total sunshine-hours.
A combination of heat, sunshine and long-term shifts from climate change set the stage for an unprecedented weather year early across the UK, the Met Office said. By mid-May, the UK was recording its driest and sunniest spring in more than a century. Record-warm ocean waters boosted temperatures even more ahead of the summer, which saw several heat waves and surging wildfire risk as water companies enacted hosepipe bands to bolster reservoir levels as drought conditions settled across England.
Seasonal changes over the autumn and winter brought relief to many areas, though drought conditions still linger across parts of central England, Ofwat data show.
The record amount of sunshine helped fuel a boom in solar generation. More than 18.5 terawatt-hours of solar energy was produced in 2025, a 30% increase over the previous year and the most since record-keeping started, data from the National Energy System Operator show.
In a statement, UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks said the record amount of sunshine highlights a pathway to boost energy production and bring down the cost of energy bills.
“Solar is one of the cheapest forms of power,” he said. “As we move into 2026, we will scale up the solar power we need to shield households from volatile fossil fuel markets and tackle the climate crisis.”
Photograph: The sun sets over a residential street in the Stoke Newington district of London. Photo credit: Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg
Copyright 2026 Bloomberg.
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