By Megan Corton Scott

Britain has experienced five periods of extreme heat since May.

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They are estimated to have contributed to more than 3,000 excess deaths.

Across the country, extreme temperatures are placing growing pressure on the NHS, disrupting schools, making homes unbearable and putting vulnerable people at risk. For many, particularly infants, older people, disabled people and those with pre-existing health conditions, extreme heat is hugely dangerous.

Parts of the environmental movement have historically been cautious about air conditioning. The concern was that poorly insulated buildings cooled by inefficient, energy-hungry systems would simply increase emissions and make climate change worse. The priority was rightly placed on better building design, insulation, ventilation, shading and greener urban spaces.

But what was once a sensible environmental argument has rapidly become an argument that is outdated, harmful, and betrays the vulnerable people we seek to protect.

The left cannot afford to let access to cooling become another culture-war battleground, framed as a choice between caring about climate change and keeping people safe. Britain is getting hotter, and millions of people live in homes never designed for the temperatures we now routinely experience.

The uncomfortable reality is that extreme heat kills. It kills older people. It kills those with respiratory and cardiovascular conditions. It kills people whose housing traps heat for days with nowhere for it to go. It places huge strain on our public services and health system. And, as with almost every climate impact, it hits the poorest........

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