tonight at ten: the uk has today recorded its highest ever temperature — 40.3 degrees celsius in lincolnshire the extreme heat sparks fires — this one in east london destroyed homes — a major incident is declared in london and hertfordshire. scotland has its hottest day ever — 34.8 degrees. in england, more than 30 places beat the previous record of 38.7 degrees. if we continue climate change as we are at present, then we will see this sort of extreme temperature ever more frequently into the future. it was even hotter in france — campsites razed to the ground as huge fires sweep through the south west of the country.

temperature heat has caused travel disruption here. also on the programme tonight: higher than expected pay rises for many public sector workers across the uk, but they won't keep up with inflation. and from four to three, as kemi baydenoch is knocked out of the race to become our next prime minister. and coming up on the bbc news channel: ben stokes is out cheaply in his final odi as england are beaten by south africa in durham. good evening. it has been a day of record breaking tempertaures breaking tempertu res across the united kingdom — more than a0 degrees

celsisus for the first time. the uk's top temperature today was in coningsby in lincolnshire, where it hit 40.3 degrees according to the provisionalfigures. but more than 30 weather stations across england beat the previous record of 38.7 degrees set injuly 2019. and scotland had its hottest day ever. 34.8c was recorded in charterhall in the borders. 0ur climate editorjustin rowlatt is in cambridge — where the uk's previous record was set. well i'm in the botanic garden in cambridgeshire that recorded the previous all—time record temperature in 2019. that has been comprehensively smashed today. it is a significant moment, but it is by no means a surprise. climate scientists have been saying for years the uk would see new record temperatures and the reason is simple — the greenhouse gases created when we burn fossil fuels trap heat in the atmosphere, raising global temperatures. 1milli

trap heat in the atmosphere, raising global temperatures.— global temperatures. with today's heat came fires _ global temperatures. with today's heat came fires and _ global temperatures. with today's heat came fires and lots _ global temperatures. with today's heat came fires and lots of- global temperatures. with today's heat came fires and lots of them. | heat came fires and lots of them. huge plumes of smoke rose above london as grass fires engulfed homes. the fire brigade declared a major incident. fix, homes. the fire brigade declared a major incident.— major incident. a number of the calls we have — major incident. a number of the calls we have been _ major incident. a number of the calls we have been dealing - major incident. a number of the calls we have been dealing with | calls we have been dealing with today have been wild fires or grass fires, where the ground has been tinder box dry result of the weather. tinder box dry result of the weather-— tinder box dry result of the weather. , ., . ., , weather. temperature records were tumblinu weather. temperature records were tumbling before _ weather. temperature records were tumbling before midday, _ weather. temperature records were tumbling before midday, the - weather. temperature records were tumbling before midday, the 39.1. tumbling before midday, the 39.1 recorded near gatwick airport was a warning. within an hour another record, 40.2 at heathrow. by afternoon a new record when coningsby in lincolnshire reached 40.3 celsius. there was a new provisional record for scotland too,

insit rating the previous record. we insit rating the previous record. - have been beating records by 1.5 and 2 degrees. and this is unusual. these are high temperatures over a broad area and quite surprising. look at today's temperatures compared to previous records. in 1976 it peaked just shy of 36 degrees. it was 27 years before that record was broken. 16 years after that, it hit 38.7 celsius. just three years later and we have got today's new record. who would have thought over 40 degrees in the uk? and it isn'tjust get being hotter, years ago temperatures would only reach peaks like this in the far south. but look how the temperatures are moving north and west. the heat is getting more intense and it is spreading. and say scientists, we need to prepare for more record

temperatures in the coming years. the first thing organisations can do is make sure their heat wave plans are suitable and fit for purpose and they're going to work. as individuals we can recognise that heat waves are not fun things to enjoy. they can be damaging and really affect our health.— really affect our health. it was certainly too _ really affect our health. it was certainly too hot _ really affect our health. it was certainly too hot for _ really affect our health. it was certainly too hot for most - really affect our health. it was - certainly too hot for most tourists in cambridge today. those taking to the river brought their own shelter and they needed it. the only sensible place to be was in the shade and that says something important about our changing world. it ought to be a critical warning for even in this country, but especially our policy makers that climate change is not something to be ignored. it is a really critical issue that we have to address as a country, and as a world.— issue that we have to address as a country, and as a world. some people did find ways — country, and as a world. some people did find ways to _ country, and as a world. some people did find ways to cool—

country, and as a world. some people did find ways to cool down. _ country, and as a world. some people did find ways to cool down. but - country, and as a world. some people did find ways to cool down. but the i did find ways to cool down. but the message from scientists is clear — if we want to stop britain and the world getting even hotter, we need to start cutting emissions and quickly. this is the village of wennington in london. fire destroyed these homes. hundreds of firefighters have been tackling fires. major incidents have been declared in london and hertfordshire as fires broke out today. 0ur correspondent daniel sandford is there for us tonight. the wind has changed and we can smell the burning from the charred homes down the road. we saw the reality today here of living in a country where temperatures reach the high 30s and low 405. what seems high 305 and low 405. what seems to have been a spontaneous fire,

possibly in a compost heap ju5t ripped through this village. a5 weather thermometers breached the 40 degrees mark for the first time in britain, london was burning. in wennington, on the capital's far eastern edge, a small fire in a back garden quickly turned to an inferno that ripped through several properties, including this woman's. i was told that i needed to leave and so i left and went to my local church because we've got a community church. but after spending a few minutes in the church, then we realised that the church ground was also on fire so we were told to evacuate the church. at a nearby school, tim stock and his family were recovering from seeing their house go up in flames. it was like a scene from the blitz, you know, or war of the worlds. it was windows popping out everywhere, explosions. it was pretty frightening all round, really, but i'm just pleased there was no fatalities. as more units arrived and firefighters battled the blaze in the fields around, horses could be heard whinnying in panic.

this fire and fires right across the capital have led to the london fire brigade declaring a major incident. just across the thames in dartford, another of the fires was burning fiercely in heathland beside the a2. the fires were burning north of the capital, too, in milton keynes, where a fire spread to the kiddi caru day nursery who said all the children and staff were safely evacuated, but the nursery itself and several homes were destroyed. in norfolk, a fierce blaze was burning at snettisham coastal park, home to many rare birds, and there were concerns about a nearby campsite. the heat has peaked today and it should be cooler tomorrow but the tinder—dry grassland across england and wales will remain a problem. people are being asked to be very careful and not to use barbecues. daniel sandford, bbc news. today was scotland's hottest ever

day, with the record being set in charterhall in the scottish borders. 0ur scotland correspondent lorna gordon is nearby in duns. lorna. yes, scotland has been experiencing its hottest day since records began. 0ne local said the weather felt very cosy! and it has been that, the met office said charter hall has set a office said charter hall has set a new provisional record—breaking temperature for scotland of 34.8. that is a big jump from the previous record set in scotland almost two decades ago back in 2003 of 32.9. that was also set in the scottish borders. now, parts of scotland have seen rain today and it has been colder, some might say more comfortable in the north of scotland. but in the areas of heat there has been travel disruptions and warnings of the dangers around water, multiple agencies urging

people to take care and be aware of the risk of cold water shock and the scottish fire and rescue service this afternoon warning of wild fire risk in southern and eastern parts of scotland, saying that has been raised to the level of very high. thank you. thousands of people are without power in yorkshire and lincolnshire after the extreme temperatures over the last two days caused equipmemnt to fail. parts of yorkshire have seen the temperature rising to 39 degrees. and it hit 39 degrees celsisus at newcastle airport. 0ur correspondent danny savage reports from selby in north yorkshire. high noon in selby. the hot air from north africa reached far into northern england. it was 32 degrees already. inside, the industrial fridge was doing its job, keeping everyone cool. some people enjoy the sun, it's like being on holiday in spain for them and they're coming and enjoying it but half the other people... "it's too hot, too hot!" they want to come in and cool off in here. round here, they put up signs

to explain why their doors weren't open to welcome customers. stay in during the day, plenty of fans on, all the curtains are closed. those with life experience thought it was all a bit too much. so i think it's getting worse. it's not normal, is it, _ this kind of weather for england? it's not normal at all. not like this. on a neighbouring table, these two both had a night shift of sorts last night — one at a factory, and one at the bedside. oh, that's really nice. it is! we do have fans around the factory but it's...it�*s still very hot. we even had an ice cream van outside that they've paid for for us, so... in the middle of the night? in the middle of the night — it was lovely! i've got a three—year—old and an eight—year—old whojust, at three o'clock this morning, they eventually fell asleep, both of them. this primary school in the centre of selby has decided to do things a bit differently today. they started earlier this morning and finished earlier as well, so it's lunchtime and they've already gone home. theyjust found conditions yesterday were too hot and knew it was going to be even hotter today.

siren wails. the consequences were more serious for some. the ambulance service had a busy day dealing with people with heatstroke and as the afternoon wore on, like yesterday, fires broke out on dry grassland and heath. this blaze threatened homes near wakefield. luckily, the damage was contained to the gardens. the towns were hot, the countryside was baking. thousands of people were left without power as electricity supplies failed. gritters were deployed to treat melting roads with sand. and in the yorkshire dales, a's guard falls, a popular beauty spot, ran dry. the consequences of this intense heat will be felt for some time. danny savage, bbc news, north yorkshire. rail services have been heavily disrupted with no services in or out of london's king cross. 0ther train operators have also

experienced disruption. the intense heat has led to some of of the rail tracks buckling and overhead cables have also been affected. 0ur transport correspondent katy austin is at kings cross station now. yes, the lack of services from london kings cross up the east coast main line was expected and planned and companies have been running reduced time tables, but there has been a lot of disruption. all services to and from euston were suspended, after a fire by the track caused by power cables coming down and the west coast said it would stop its services for the rest of the day, because of the number of incidents taking place. now the rail infrastructure we have at the moment wasn't designed and engineered for the high temperatures we have seen today and yesterday and although there have been speed restrictions in place to try and reduce the risk

of problems happening, there has been a list of incidents, including signalling problems, buckled rail and other issues with power lines. now tonight a numb of companies have warned that despite work going on in the night, disruption is likely to continue into tomorrow morning and people should check before they travel. . ~' , ., well, it's notjust the uk that has been hit by scorching temperatures, western europe is also in the grip of a ferocious heatwave. have a look at this map and you can see just how extreme temperatures have been over the last week. in portugal, it has hit 47 degrees — that's a record for portugal in july. spain reached 45 degrees last wednesday. it was a little cooler in germany today at 39 degrees. but in france, parisians have been sweltered in 41 degrees and huge wildfires have been sweeping through the south west of france, from where our correspondent lucy williamson reports.

in teste—de—buch, we drove towards the fire, following fire crews as they disappeared into the smoke. all around us, the forest still smouldered, waiting for a chance to reignite. you can really taste and smell the smoke in the air here. fire crews have been battling these fires for a week now and while they are contained in parts, they are still not under control despite the drop in temperatures. you can see some of them still working over here. the key concern now is preventing any fresh fires from taking hold. they talk about an apocalypse here. last week it was paradise. these campsites carry evidence of both. holiday memories spat out by the flames. the guests evacuated last week. translation: it's heartbreaking l for the locals, for the tourists l who come here, it's upsetting. and of course us firemen feel the same way but itjust makes us

more determined to finish the job. a short drive away, rachel has been packed for days. her husband's old camper van stashed with water. and then we've got a couple of baskets... anything irreplaceable, packed into a bag. you could actually taste the smoke in your mouth. it was really disconcerting, this acrid taste. and there was ash falling from the sky. this situation is really scary. it's something that is so out of our control and heat waves are happening more and more. we are surrounded by forest and it's really something that has made us ask the question, are we going to go back to england perhaps because of it? it's frightening. across the border in spain, angel martin arjona was caught on camera yesterday heading out in his bulldozer to dig a firebreak. now you see him — now you don't. it's the closest escape imaginable.

this is what the apocalypse looks like up close. and this is what it looks like to survive it. lucy williamson, bbc news, teste—de—buch. extraordinary images. let's go back to our climate editorjustin rowlatt. more than 40 degrees today in the uk, what does it tell us about the future? ~ ., ~ ., ., ., future? we have known for a date that these dangerous _ future? we have known for a date i that these dangerous temperatures were on the way we have had time to prepare for them but look at the impact they have had. wildfires, we have seen railways and other services down, schools closed early, many workers had to leave early to avoid the heat and many towns and cities were empty. some people will say we have overreacted but for a lot of older people and people with underlying illnesses, they will really have suffered in the sweltering heat. some of them will have died. and climate scientists

are absolutely clear, saying that unless we do more to cap tackle climate change, heat waves like this will become more frequent and they will become more frequent and they will also get hotter.— will also get hotter. justin, thank ou. the rest of the news now. millions of public sector workers in england have been told how much their wages will rise by after the government announced this year's pay deal. unions had been calling for wages to reflect the rising cost of living, but ministers warned that could push inflation even higher. teachers in england will receive a 5% pay rise. health workers in england will get at least £1,400 more. and all police officers in england and wales will get a £1,900 pay rise from september. in a moment, our education editor, branwenjeffreys, reports on the reaction from teachers, but first here's our health editor, hugh pym. a below—inflation wage award — the royal college of nursing telling westminster it sees this as a pay cut. minister said they had followed pay review body recommendations

and that high wage rises would have a damaging outcome. but no minister was available for interview. health staff, thoug,h made plain their views. if people understood what we do for them and for their relatives, people would understand why we are asking for above inflation. leanne is an intensive care nurse. she says people need to know the realities faced by those in her profession. myjob is to keep your relative alive so that they can come home to you and you can have a quality of life with your family. why can't i have the same? i can't afford to have a child. i can't afford to buy a home. and this is not my hobby — this is myjob. and i deserve a quality of life as well. debbie, who is from west yorkshire, has been a paramedic for 30 years. she says pay awards below inflation will drive people away from the nhs. she says the recent rise in cost of fuel and bills is hurting.

it is not enough, nowhere near enough. we need something that is going to address the cost of living and the inflation rises and actually give us a comfortable way of working, and be able to live in between work. we have gone through covid and we have had to put up with all of that and we just feel this is a real slap in the face. the government has said before it thinks inflation—busting pay rises will harm the economy but nhs employers are concerned they will have to fund some of the pay awards from their own budgets, and health unions have made clear their members will be consulted on further action which could include strikes. hugh pym, bbc news. a teacherjust starting out, and one who has taught for many years. now facing two different experiences of pay. right, super quiet... experienced teachers likejulie are a big part of the workforce. despite this 5%, she faces a real—terms fall in the value of her pay.

it follows many years of it falling behind prices. certainly in the last few years, i don't think it has risen with the cost of living. teaching is a very rewarding job, everyone will tell you that. but it is a very, very demanding job. and do i think my pay reflects that? probably not. guys, you should be writing the date and title... the numbers add up differently for new teachers like anna. starting salaries are going up to £30,000 next year. i was really, really thrilled to hear about that because i feel we are kind getting the recognition. i think with aspiring teachers, who are maybe thinking about going into the profession and if they are weighing up the vocation and the pay, i think now that kind of solidifies that. this evening, the main education union said the offer was not enough. it will ask teachers to vote on industrial action. we do not want to have to take

industrial action but when, - on top of the very long series - of pay cuts we've had since 2010, which are already damaging teacher recruitment and retention, - when the government proposes l the biggest single real—terms pay cut for generations, - then unions have to act. schools have been trying to plan for pay increases. the 5% for most teachers is more than they were expecting. it has to come out of school budgets — also under pressure from rising bills. staffing as a whole accounts for over 85% of our entire cost. we are seeing energy increases, for example, of 89, 90% plus and that is a general trend across schools. that is causing significant pressure from outside the pay rise world. education unions say a below—inflation increase is an insult. the government says it is the most generous for years. schools and parents could be caught in between.

branwenjeffreys, bbc news, sunderland. so how do today's public sector pay deals compare with private sector pay rises, and what are the economic implications? 0ur economics editor, faisal islam, has been comparing the numbers. the big backdrop to this is of course inflation at 9—10%. essentially, the government has chosen to split the difference with average pay awards at around 4—5%. more than planned, but not going as far as that rate of inflation. stick with that 9%. the government's argument is that they want to send a signal to the rest of the economy that they should not chase the inflation rate and prolong high inflation. for yea rs for years rather than months. they think that private sector earnings growth is about 5%, so in keeping with the awards announced today, but increasingly, private sector workers are getting retention and cost of living one—off bonuses. so that's 7% if you include bonuses.

so this is not about generosity — it's about necessity. at lower pay bands, public sector are losing their staff to the private sector — supermarkets, warehouses — amid worker shortages, and that's why we are seeing problems in social care that contribute to ambulance queues, for example. now, all this will leave many public sector workers facing a real cut in their income, for this year, much of that inflation is caused by energy and accounted for by the government's cost of living support, especially those on lower incomes. lower paid constables, for example, are getting higher rises than police chiefs. and the government big hope is it will be seen as generous enough to prevent national strikes currently being discussed by major unions. there in the last few minutes, the royal college of nurses have just announced a strike ballot. lastly, the government also is not providing extra cash over and above what was already planned, which raises some doubt

about the ability to deliver even these rises at a time when many public services are stretched. thank you. the race to become the next prime minister has narrowed after conservative mps cast their votes again today. the former chancellor rishi sunak has again topped the ballot. he received 118 votes, penny mordaunt got 92 nominations and liz truss 86, narrowing the gap between the two. but kemi badenoch was eliminated from the race after coming last with 59 votes. tomorrow, the three remaining candidates will be whittled down to the final two when mps vote again. the party —— party mem ship then chooses the next leader. 0ur political editor, chris mason, is in westminster tonight. how is it all shaping up? the promises _ how is it all shaping up? the promises and _ how is it all shaping up? tie: promises and their and the how is it all shaping up? ti2 promises and their and the hustings now the real crunch point here at westminster. i have spent the last

few hours over in parliament and the persuading and cajoling and love bombing is going on because it aces the final realignment of mp5, deciding how they vote tomorrow and who they give those two golden tickets to to send to the run—off amongst conservative party members so how does it look tonight? team sunak is out on the lead all the way through but they are still short of the magic 120 which would guarantee them a place in the final round. what about team mordaunt, forever second until now? an accusation from david a set of skulduggery tonight, back penny morton, suggesting that some of team sunak have lent boats to liz truss because they would rather face her in the to liz truss because they would ratherface her in the run —— lent folks. it is denied by rishi sunak�*s team and they say if that happened it is independently and not a result of their activity and they are not bothered about who they face. what of the foreign secretary, liz truss? they think they are in a good spot

despite being in third place all the way through but they hope to peel off more of kemi badenoch�*s supporters than any mordaunt managers to. but the reality is that there is a huge amount ofjeopardy but it's not obvious what will happen tomorrow and not obvious what will happen over the summer. but editor chris mason, thank you. spare a thought for the england players who've been trying to keep cool as they prepare for their quarter—final against spain in the women's euros tomorrow night. our sports correspondent natalie pirks reports beating the heat while the country sizzles. training was earlier today, with cooling wraps and ice vests used to regulate temperatures. keeping an eager eye away from the cameras was head coach sarina wiegman. she has had covid and could yet miss the match tomorrow but when asked about the magnitude of the occasion, the dutch manager played it typically cool. most of our youth talk about pressure all the time and we talk about football. so what we're trying to do is just play football, play at our best

and try to use our strengths and try to exploit the weaknesses of the opponent. close! and the rebound is in! norway know this all too well. record—breaking, _ history— making, barnstorming performance from england. the last time england were in brighton, the 8—0 thrashing was a euros record which sent a clear message to their rivals. what a night. but as swashbuckling and ruthless as that performance was, spain will be a step up in class. they might have lost a couple of players to injury but they dominate possession. patience will be key. wednesday, tomorrow is the biggest game on horizon and after that, you know, we will see where we are and hopefully it will be the semi and then the final. so, yes, it is easy to put to the back of your mind when you're here but yeah, it's definitely something i've been dreaming about all my life. record crowds, no goals conceded, 14 scored, as england sauntered through to the quarterfinals. tomorrow, though, well,

the heat is really on. natalie pirks, bbc news, brighton. finally, if you play the euromillions lottery, i would check your ticket as it has been announced that a uk ticket holder has won the jackpot of £195 million, the biggest national lottery win ever. so if you did buy a ticket, go and find it now! time for a look at the weather. here's ben rich. i know you told of the templates were coming but it still felt extraordinary in london in 40 degrees. it extraordinary in london in 40 de . rees. . , extraordinary in london in 40 decrees. ., , ., degrees. it was astonishing, not 'ust degrees. it was astonishing, not just london. _ degrees. it was astonishing, not just london, huge _ degrees. it was astonishing, not just london, huge part - degrees. it was astonishing, not just london, huge part of - degrees. it was astonishing, not just london, huge part of a - degrees. it was astonishing, not i just london, huge part of a country i think 40 degrees days in the uk works on something we thought it might happen one day in the future but today it has occurred. we have broken the record, 40.3 celsius provisionally. normally when we break temperature record it is by a fraction of a degree but the old record was 38.7 and we have broken this by more than 1.5 degrees which

is a really significant development. as i said, it was widespread, according to the met office, more than 30 different observing stations broke the former record product that is a selection and in the scottish borders we saw a new record for scotland as well. but things have been changing out west with thunderstorms putting in. those are working eastwards, quite well scattered but a few in the south—east at the moment and any rain in the south—east is very welcome after the fires we have seen. some of the showers and storms will continue through the night with more developing in wales and a south—west later but we are bringing in cooler and fresher conditions from the west. still a warm night in eastern parts of england, still a bit of a struggle to sleep particularly after what has been such a hot day. but tomorrow we see a change to fresher conditions. cloud and showers in wales and the