Met Office has say on UK heatwave as Britons brace for hottest temperatures of this year

There is a possibility that temperatures can potentially match or cross 32.2C record set in June

A yellow alert has been issued by the UK Health Security Agency as temperatures are set to go up amid a delayed heatwave this week.

The heat alert, which is for all of England apart from the North East, is between 2 and 9pm on 10 September as the UK is set to face temperatures up to as high as 32C or more, which can potentially break the record for this year.

As the nation emerges from a bout of unsettled weather, high pressure centred over the southeast is set to bring a wave of summer heat, the Met Office forecast said.

The week will kick off with mist and fog clearing on Tuesday to reveal another dry and sunny day for much of the UK. While the far north may see some cloud cover, it will remain drier than in previous days, the forecaster said in its daily update.

While the mercury will be higher than before on Tuesday, temperatures are expected to peak on Wednesday and Thursday when they could reach as high as early 32C or more in isolated spots in the southeast.

There is a possibility that the mercury can potentially match or cross the year’s 32.2C record from June.

“High pressure is situated to the southeast of the UK, which is bringing more settled conditions with temperatures on the rise through the first half of this week,” Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Mark Sidaway said.

“While the highest temperatures are expected in the south, heatwave conditions are likely across much of England and Wales especially, with parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland also likely to see some unseasonably high temperatures.”

Mr Sidaway explained that an active tropical cyclone season in the North Atlantic is “helping to amplify the pattern across the North Atlantic, and has pushed the jet stream well to the north of the UK, allowing some very warm air to be drawn north”.

“It’s a marked contrast to the much of meteorological summer, when the UK was on the northern side of the jet stream with cooler air and more unsettled weather.”

While the week is largely expected to remain hot, there are some breezy conditions in western areas which could subdue the feeling of the temperatures for some.

Another exception to the largely very warm conditions this week is the far north and west of Scotland, which will see some periods of showery rain at times, in addition to some North Sea coasts which may see some low cloud.

There’s also a chance of some very isolated thundery showers crossing areas to the west from Tuesday, though this is unlikely to be very widespread, the forecaster said.

In addition to high daytime temperatures, which could see official heatwaves be observed from as early as Tuesday in some spots, the conditions will also remain uncomfortably warm overnight, especially in the south, with a chance of tropical nights, which is when overnight temperatures remain in excess of 20C, the Met Office said.

The highest overnight minimum temperature for September on record is 21.7C, and this record could be threatened on Wednesday and Thursday nights in particular.