With the east coast of Australia recovering from another heatwave, research from the Australia Institute shows the inequitable effects of Australia’s most lethal form of weather.

Older, poorer, sicker people living in places away from the coast are worst affected by extreme heat and, as Australia warms, targeted interventions are needed.

A grey-haired couple walk into a pub in Sydney’s west. It’s a Saturday and although it’s barely midday the mercury is already pushing 35 degrees, so when they fling open the door a blast of hot air infiltrates the air-conditioned front bar.

The woman calls out for help as the man, white as a sheet, slumps into an empty stool. She’s on the phone to triple zero because he has a heart condition, and the heat has triggered what the whole pub now fears is a heart attack.

Extreme heat is the No.1 cause of weather-related illness and death in all parts of Australia – except, for obvious reasons, Tasmania. The critical threshold for “extreme” heat is 35 degrees, because at that temperature exposure of six hours or more can be fatal. The people most vulnerable to extreme heat either live below the poverty line, have a long-term health issue, and/or are aged 65 and older.

This is because people on lower incomes may not be able to afford things like air-conditioning, robust home insulation, or to rent in suburbs that benefit from........

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