What’s the hottest it’s ever been in the UK?

Hot hot hot

The Met Office said temperatures may hit 40˚C on Sunday, which would be the highest ever recorded in the UK. The current record of 38.7˚C was in Cambridge Botanic Garden on 25 July 2019. The lowest ever temperature of -27.2˚C was recorded in Braemar, Aberdeenshire twice: once on 11 February 1895 and on 10 January 1982.

Source: Met Office

Cutting remarks

Former chancellor Lord Lamont warned Tory leadership candidates not to enter a ‘Dutch auction’ over promising tax cuts. Here are the cuts they have proposed so far:

Nadhim Zahawi £43.4bn

Jeremy Hunt £39bn

Liz Truss £38.4bn

Tom Tugendhat £19.8bn

Penny Mordaunt £4.8bn

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Matthew Parris

What if Trump is just bonkers?

Rishi Sunak £0bn

Kemi Badenoch Unspecified

Suella Braverman Unspecified

Source: HMRC ready reckoner (2025/26)

Top of the pops

The UN’s new estimates project that the global population will peak at 10.4bn in 2086 and that India will overtake China as the most populous nation next year. The projections for other countries are:

2050 / % change

UK 71.7m / +6.7%

US 375m / +12%

China 1.32bn /  -7.6%

India 1.67bn / +19%

France 65.9m / +2.1%

Germany 79.1m / -5.2%

Japan 104m / -17%

Source: UN world population prospects

BBC big-bucks

Gary Lineker remained the highest-paid BBC star last year, earning £1.35m. Who were the next best paid?

(Current salary / change on last year)

Zoe Ball £980k / -£150k

Steve Wright £450k / -£15k

Alan Shearer £450k / +£60k

Stephen Nolan £415k / +£10k

Source: BBC Annual Report

Classics for all?

The Cambridge Latin Course has been overhauled to include more female characters. How many state secondary schools in England still teach Latin?

2021: 2.7% 

2013: 8%

2009: 15%

1999: 8%

1973: 45%

Source: British Council Survey, DfE, Cambridge Schools Classics Project