Meteorological Office (Met Office) and the UK Centre of Ecology and Hydrology: ‘Britain’s recent unusually stormy winter weather and flooding is “consistent” with global warming, according to a new report out from the UK Meteorological Office (Met Office) and the UK Centre of Ecology and Hydrology.

The report suggests there is evidence for increased North Atlantic storm intensity and increased UK rainfall intensity. It links the severe weather in the UK with the recent exceptionally cold spell experienced in North America and says the weather on both sides of the Atlantic “has its roots in the tropics”. The report, A Global Perspective on the Recent Storms and Floods in the UK, also hints at links with climate change. At the launch of the report, Met Office chief scientist Dame Julia Slingo, stated “all the evidence suggests there is a link to climate change” although she also said that there was “no definitive answer” to the question of what had caused the storms.

The run of storms that has hit Britain over the winter has been fueled by colder than usual air over North America entering the North Atlantic jet stream which caused a temperature gradient that contributes to the creation of a succession of depressions, the report concludes.’ To read more go to