Green MP Pushes for UK Maximum Workplace Temperature Law

Green Party MP Hannah Spencer will introduce a private member’s bill that would create an independent body to recommend and enforce maximum safe workplace temperatures in the United Kingdom. The legislation does not set a specific temperature but would require the body to issue guidance and outline implementation procedures.

The Guardian

The bill emerges as England and Wales experience unprecedented heat, with temperatures exceeding 34 °C on nine occasions this year and six days above 35 °C—both records surpassing the previous high-temperature streaks of 1976 and 2020. Forecasters expect the scorching conditions to continue through at least Wednesday.

The Guardian

The proposal is expected to attract cross-party backing, including Labour MPs Rebecca Long-Bailey, Alex Sobel, Nadia Whittome, SNP MP Graham Leadbitter, Plaid Cymru MP Liz Saville Roberts, and independent MP Jeremy Corbyn. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned that a legal maximum cannot be imposed because internal heat sources—such as bakery ovens—can raise temperatures independently of the weather. The HSE’s current code of practice recommends a minimum of 16 °C (61 °F), or 13 °C for strenuous work, and the government has announced a public consultation later this year to consider updating guidance, potentially including temperature thresholds.

The Guardian

Unions including Unison and the Trade Union Congress have condemned the absence of maximum-temperature guidance, urging a ceiling of 30 °C for general indoor work and 27 °C for strenuous tasks. Campaigners argue that workers—from bus drivers to bakers and builders—are exposed to unsafe heat without adequate protection, and they view the bill as a long-overdue response to a growing climate-driven health risk.

The Guardian

• “From bus and train drivers sweltering in cabins that are hotter than the soaring temperatures outside and bakers working in temperatures of over 40 degrees, to builders whose workplaces offer no respite from the heat, the government has a duty to protect all of us,” — Hannah Spencer, MP

The Guardian

• “I had one constituent contact me about the appalling conditions he faced laying Tarmac on roads in Gorton and Denton in temperatures he called unbearable.” — Hannah Spencer, MP

The Guardian

• “ She said it was “absurd” the country did not have maximum temperature guidance: “This is something workers and trade unions have been raising the alarm about for many years – it shouldn’t have taken this long to act, but the unsafe temperatures we’re seeing now should be a huge wake-up call.” — Hannah Spencer, MP

The Guardian

• “We’ve seen absolute chaos as a result of these recent temperatures, and such a massive human cost, yet we haven’t heard a peep from government about how they plan to protect us all.” — Hannah Spencer, MP

The Guardian