has caused widespread disruption, and a major incident has been declared in london, where the mayor sadiq khan said fire crews were struggling to cope. the un's climate chief has warned heatwaves like the one gripping western europe are becoming more frequent. our first report is from our climate editorjustin rowlatt. with today's searing heat came fires, and lots of them. huge plumes of smoke rose above london as grassfires engulfed homes on the outskirts of the capital. the london fire brigade declared a major incident. a number of the calls that we've been dealing with today have been wildfires or grassfires, where the ground has been tinder box dry result of the weather over the last week, but in particular, the last two days. temperature records were tumbling before midday today. the 39.1 degrees recorded at charlwood near gatwick airport was a warning of what was to come. within an hour, another record had been set at another airport — 40.2 celsius at heathrow. by mid—afternoon, we got a new provisional heat record for the uk when coningsby in lincolnshire reached 40.3 celsius. and

earlier, the mayor of london, sadiq khan, commended the appointment of sir mark rowley and called theoner". well, sir mark hasn't in the police for the last four in the police for the last four years. that's really important. he brings an outside experience. he also knows the importance of a commissioner who is to win back the trust and confidence from so many communities in london he has have a plan to get the basics of policing rights and also carry on the success we've had in reducing violent crime in our city. just to bring a couple of government appointments have been announced. not great surprises because at least one of the people is back in the job they were occupying before they resigned to fourscore boris johnson out. that is heather wheeler returns to her previous job as planetree secretary at the cabinet office. you may recall she was herself in the headlines a few weeks ago when she made reference to god awful places in connection with blackpool and manchester for which he apologised. guy opperman is back in government as the department for work and pensions secretary and

has caused widespread disruption and a major incident has been declared in london, where the mayor sadiq khan said fire crews were struggling to cope. the un's climate chief has warned heatwaves like the one gripping western europe are becoming more frequent. our first report is from our climate editorjustin rowlatt. with today's searing heat came fires, and lots of them. huge plumes of smoke rose above london as grassfires engulfed homes on the outskirts of the capital. the london fire brigade declared a major incident. a number of the calls that we've been dealing with today have been wildfires or grassfires, where the ground has been tinder box dry result of the weather over the last week, but in particular, the last two days. temperature records were tumbling before midday today. the 39.1 degrees recorded at charlwood near gatwick airport was a warning of what was to come. within an hour, another record had been set at another airport — 40.2 celsius at heathrow. by mid—afternoon, we got a new provisional heat record for the uk when coningsby in lincolnshire reached 40.3 celsius. and

sadiq did not go, of course, every day at the sight of ukrainian militants a dozen and a half, settlements over the past week, the density of shelling has become noticeably less, however, every day investigators record new destruction in front of missiles and shells peaceful city. unarmed, it happens all day. with breaks there are small now two. then again, the dead and wounded among the civilian population were partially destroyed, whether damaged 30 buildings? this is just yesterday for the past 160 days. the dpr was shelled more than 6,000 times. i only heard two arrivals, there were two at first, then i was blown up. we jumped out , the glass fell down, everything fell down, and we are all, we are sitting in the entrance hall on the ground floor, and here there is no residential sector, there is no military. there are no uh, roadblocks here. nothing here to stop these monstrous shelling. maybe only one thing needs to be driven away , as far as possible from the borders around the position , slowly but surely, the allied knot is being tightened troops continue to liberate the territory

the mayor of london, sadiq khan, says the city's fire service had its busiest day since the second worldtemperatures. the british capital was one of 15 areas around the uk to declare a major incident. one of the most serious fires was in wennington, east london, where several houses were destroyed. daniel sandford reports. daybreak this morning revealed the devastation wreaked by the fire in wennington on the far east edge of london. homes, cars, businesses all consumed by flames that had appeared almost out of nowhere in the blistering heat of yesterday afternoon. london's fire brigade had been stretched to the limit. it was incredibly busy, incredibly challenging. people were physically exhausted after an incredibly hard. after an incredibly hard day. that continued throughout the night and we had resources throughout the night planning for the next few days as well to make sure we'd got days as well to make sure we've got all the cover and resources we need. but it was not just wennington. this was dagenham, just down the road, where a fire swept in from a nearby park. away from my ho

earlier, the mayor of london sadiq khan commended the appointment of sir mark rowley and called the newr mark hasn't in the police for the last four years. that's really important. he brings an outside experience. he also knows the importance of a commissioner who is to win back the trust and confidence from so many communities in london lost he has have a plan to get the basics of policing rights and also carry of policing right and also carry on the success we've had in reducing violent crime in our city. joining me now is the crime and police commentator danny shaw. good to see you again. first of all, how difficult a choice to think this was and given the headlines they have been receiving in the last few years, you might wonder if anyone decent wanted to be the next commissioner.— decent wanted to be the next commissioner. , . ., , ,, commissioner. the selection process was marked — commissioner. the selection process was marked by _ commissioner. the selection process was marked by the _ commissioner. the selection process was marked by the absence - commissioner. the selection pr

the mayor of london, sadiq khan, says the capital's fire service had its busiest day since the secondrious fires was in wennington, east london, where several houses were destroyed. daniel sandford reports. daybreak this morning revealed the devastation wreaked by the fire in wennington on the far east edge of london. homes, cars, businesses all consumed by flames that had appeared almost out of nowhere in the blistering heat of yesterday afternoon. london's fire brigade had been stretched to the limit. it was incredibly busy, incredibly challenging. people were physically exhausted after an incredibly hard. that continued throughout the night and we had resources throughout the night planning for the next few days as well to make sure we'd got all the cover and resources we need. but it was not just wennington. this was dagenham, just down the road, where a fire sweating from a nearby park. —— where a fire swept in. away from my house, there's a fire. and it's got gas things. this afternoon we can see prefab houses that had apparently melted in the heat. around a small close, several

the mayor sadiq khan and representatives of the emergency services will lay a wreath this morning to's transport system. the ceremony this morning will take place in hyde park at the 7/7 memorial. a new exhibition opens today at windsor castle as part of the queen's platinum jubilee all about the coronation of 1953. on display will be her majesty's coronation dress, designed by sir norman hartnell as well as items of the queen's jewellery including brooches representing commonwealth countries. if you're wondering how it's looking on public transport this morning and across tfl services, there's a good service on the tubes this morning. and for all the latest travel news where you are, tune into your bbc local radio station for regular updates throughout the morning. now the weather with kate kinsella. good morning. it was a warm night last night and temperatures in central london didn't drop much below 18 celsius, but with that comes moisture. quite a grey start this morning, quite overcast but the cloud will gradually disappear and we see plenty of sunshine later. it stays dry and t

earlier, the mayor of london sadiq khan commended the appointment of sir mark rowley and called the newoner who is to win back the trust and confidence lawful communities in london have a plan to get the basics of policing rights and also carry on the success we've had in reducing violent crime in our city. had in reducing violent crime in our ci . a, ., had in reducing violent crime in our ci . ., ., had in reducing violent crime in our a 22—year—old man has been handed a life sentence for the murder of 53—year—old police community support officerjulia james. callum wheeler will serve a minimum of 37 years behind bars. ms james was found dead from serious head injuries in akholt wood in april last year. some hospital leaders in england have warned they're "living with risk" every day because their buildings urgently need repairing. nhs trust bosses blame delays to funding allocations. the government says it's working closely with trusts on building plans. covid infections in the uk are up again. latest figures show 2.7 million people had the virus last week. that's a rise of 18% on the

mayor sadiq khan, seen here pitching at the san francisco giants' stadium in may, insists costs were weeks ago as arson. dozens of homes were evacuated as 100 firefighters tackled the blaze in norbury. police are appealing for information. a week today, east london's newest overground station will open ahead of schedule. transport for london says the extension of the gospel oak to barking line will provide a rail connection to barking riverside development, a site with new homes. it's a place that, i'm sure, people want to live. it's by the river. 10,000 new homes for london connected. it's going to absolutely change the area and the local people who live there, and it's fantastic for london. a look at the tube board now. pretty much a good service all around, except for severe delays on the overground. good morning. the hot spell continues. yesterday, temperatures rose to 30 celsius in stjames's park. today, it's likely to be a little bit warmer. lots of sunshine, very little cloud, very little wind, and we're looking at a maximum of 32 celsius. now, if we get 32 celsius, still not

the mayor's office said sadiq khan was satisfied that the brigade and commissioner were committed toning unless absolutely necessary, because of strike action by the rmt union. it's expected to stop the vast majority of services running. there are no trains at all through this core of london, the thameslink service from st pancras through to london bridge. and, really, we're only running on our main line, so that line down to brighton — the brighton main line — is running, but any of the branch lines are off. many of those we're not able to run on. so please, please, do check before you travel and please only travel if absolutely necessary. meanwhile, another tube strike has been announced. members of the rmt union will walk out in three weeks' time on friday august 19th in a long—running dispute overjobs and pensions. today marks ten years since the london 2012 olympic opening ceremony. basketball player amber charles became the poster girl of the games, having been hand—picked at school. being a part of, like, the olympic ceremony, being there in the stadium when it all happened —

the mayor of london, sadiq khan, has declared a “major incident“ as emergency services battle multiplel below 25 degrees in some places. network rail has issued a "do not travel" warning for anyone travelling through the zone covered by the extreme weather warning. the east coast main line out of london's kings cross is closed, and there will be no thameslink or great northern services running north from london all day. many other lines are subject to speed restrictions. speed restrictions across most of the network today and yesterday, because of the fear that rails may buckle. the hot weather is also putting pressure on the nhs emergency services, which are seeing an increase in 999 and 111 calls. the health secretary, steve barclay, said more funding and call handlers had been put in place to cope with increased demand. five people have died while swimming in rivers and lakes yesterday — in london, berkshire, salford, northumberland and wiltshire. police and fire services are urging people not to go in rivers, reservoirs, lakes or other open water due to the dangers, including cold

sadiq khan, the labour mayor of london, has disagreed with the party's position on brexit, saying that single market. he spoke to the bbc a little earlier today. well, look, the key thing is to accept we've left the european union, brexit has happened — but what sort of relationships do we have the european union? i think it's possible to be outside the eu but be members of the single market. in fact, many of those who campaigned to leave the eu said the same thing. and the good thing about keir starmer's speech today is he's setting out a pathway to our future post—brexit, from the government for the last few years which just dithered and delayed — we've seen the fiasco of the northern ireland protocol, and it's really reassuring to me, as a patriot, to see at least one of our leaders to set out a vision of our country post—brexit. it sounds like you disagree slightly — do you think keir has got it wrong on brexit? look, keir starmer is the leader of the labour party. myjob is to be the mayor of london. that will mean on many occasions, i agree with the labour party, on some occasions

the mayor of london, sadiq khan, says the capital's fire service had its busiest day since the secondnd the uk to declare a major incident. one of the most serious fires was in wennington, east london, where several houses were destroyed. daniel sandford reports. daybreak this morning revealed the devastation wreaked by the fire in wennington on the far east edge of london. homes, cars, businesses all consumed by flames that had appeared almost out of nowhere in the blistering heat of yesterday afternoon. london's fire brigade had been stretched to the limit. it was incredibly busy, incredibly challenging. people were physically exhausted after an incredibly hard day. that continued throughout the night and we had resources throughout the night planning for the next few days as well to make sure we'd got all the cover and resources we need. but it was not just wennington. this was dagenham, just down the road, where a fire swept in from a nearby park. away from my house, there's a fire. and it's got gas things. this afternoon, we could see prefab houses that had apparently melted in t

the mayor of london sadiq khan says 41 properties were destroyed in london by fires in the heatwave.s the busiest day for the fire service in london since the second world war. on a normal date they emit receive about 350 calls on a busy day around 500, yesterday we received more than 2600 calls. at the same time fire brigade were fighting fires requiring 30 engines, some requiring 15, some 12, sanc ten. in total 42 properties have been lost, 16 firefighters were injured, thankfully all are ok, two had to go to hospital. it shows the consequences of climate change with temperatures exceeding a0 celsius. it's not rain for more than one month and the grass is incredibly dry, like tinder and month and the grass is incredibly dry, like tinderand it month and the grass is incredibly dry, like tinder and it can catch fire very easily and the fire spread very fast and one of the great things about london is the amount of green spaces we have but one of the consequences of green spaces impinging properties is where there are these grass fires they can spread quickly and damaged properties. s

sadiq khan's representations were also considered by the home secretary is part of this appointment. him this afternoon, no doubt. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick miller. hello, feeling very warm where you have the sunny spells this afternoon. most are dry. it's blustery in scotland and there are still showers to be had towards the north, and parts of western scotland brightening up a bit, but south—west scotland, northern ireland, increasingly starting in, cumbria, too, some thicker cloud may produce a few spots of light rain and drizzle out there. the higher temperatures from eastern scotland and through large parts of england and on towards the east and south—east of wales, well into the 20s. tonight, this area of thicker cloud, as it sinks further south through parts of north—west england, wales, the west midlands, still one or two showers associated with that, and blustery with showers in the far north of scotland. elsewhere, dry with clear spells and mid to low teens for the temperature. now, the weekend offers a lot of dry weather and sunny spells, then anoth

the mayor of london, sadiq khan is warning of a "climate emergency" and says the london fire brigade refer to, do we know about the causes of any of these fires? any suggestion that any of them were started deliberately? some of the behaviour of human beings inadvertently, leaving a match here, or a glass bottle is on the dry grass and magnifies the rays and the spark leads to a fire starting in most of the fires were grass fires yesterday and what you normally see our fires in this country in the national parks or on the moors all we don't normally see fires in london as they are akin to california or the south of france and this is my point, this is not normal, these are exceptional times and if we were speaking ten or 15 years ago we would be talking about a heatwave every years with temperatures in the mid 20s but if you look at the 12 hottest days in the country ever, all of them have occurred post—2003 and yesterday we were post—40 c and the chief medical officer say it's a threat to all of our lives, notjust those who are older vulnerable and for the first time in our history,

sadiq khan has disagreed with the party's position on brexit saying london and the uk is best servedccept we have left _ few hours. the key thing is to accept we have left the - few hours. the key thing is to accept we have left the eu i few hours. the key thing is to | accept we have left the eu but few hours. the key thing is to - accept we have left the eu but what sort of relationship do we have with the european union? it's possible to be outside but the members of the single market. in fact many of those who campaigned to leave said the same thing. good thing about keir starmer�*s speech as he sets out a pathway to our future post—brexit from the government for the last few years which has been delayed. we saw the fiasco of the northern ireland protocol and it's reassuring to me as a patriot to see at least one of our leaders set up a future vision of our country post—brexit. it sounds like you disagree slightly, has keir— sounds like you disagree slightly, has keir starmer got it wrong? his 'ob has keir starmer got it wrong? his “0b is to has keir starmer got it wrong? job is