A ‘brutal reminder of climate change’: Europe’s May heatwave sparks UN calls to shift to clean power
The United Nations is warning that the main culprit behind Europe's blistering temperatures is the world's "addiction" to burning fossil fuels.
Europe has been told to “kick the fossil fuel addiction” as huge parts of the continent continue to swelter under record May temperatures.
Weather forecasters warn that several countries are trapped under a “highly anomalous and powerful” heat dome – an atmospheric pattern that locks in heatwaves and is becoming more frequent due to human-caused climate change.
Dozens of European cities have witnessed temperatures far above the climatological normal high for this time of year, with London (+16°C) and Paris (+14°C) being hit the worst. Both France and the UK declared the hottest day in May on record this week.
Even typically cooler regions like Oslo experienced temperatures climb up to 18°C, an additional 3°C from average temperatures for late May.
“This record-breaking heat has the fingerprints of climate change all over it,” says Friederike Otto, a professor of Climate Science at Imperial College London.
“Temperatures on this scale were once exceptional even at the height of summer. Seeing 35°C in the UK during spring is absolutely astonishing, but the science is very clear – climate change makes these heatwaves hotter, longer and far more frequent.”
Europe’s heatwave a ‘brutal reminder’ of climate change
Simon Stiell, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), describes the unprecedented heatwave as a “brutal reminder of the spiralling impacts of the climate crisis.”
He argues the main culprit is the world’s addiction to burning coal, oil and gas, as well as destroying vital carbon sinks like forests. The UN says that fossil fuels are by far the largest contributor to global climate change, accounting for around 68 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions.
As greenhouse gas emissions blanket the Earth, they trap the sun’s heat – driving up temperatures and changing weather patterns.
“This climate-driven heatwave is a double-jeopardy, at a time when the latest war in the Middle East is showing the soaring costs of depending on fossil-fuel imports,” Stiell adds.
“But the solutions are just as clear: a faster shift to clean power, which is now cheaper than fossil fuels, and faster to produce, and hence is mission-critical for energy affordability and nations’ economic security.”
EU renewables outperform fossil fuels
Europe’s renewables have already proven to cushion households from Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital fossil fuel chokepoint that usually carries around one-fifth of global oil supplies.
Solar alone saved Europe a staggering €3 billion in March by lowering demand for gas imports, according to an analysis by SolarPower Europe. The report states that if gas prices remain high, Europe’s savings could reach as much as €67.5 billion by the end of 2026.
Last year, wind and solar generated more EU electricity than fossil fuels for the first time ever, despite a drop in hydropower and a slight rise in gas. A report from energy think tank Ember found that wind and solar accounted for 30 per cent of the EU’s electricity mix in 2025, overtaking fossil fuels by just one per cent.
The boom in renewables is helping drive down emissions, with some of the world’s top climate scientists now believing that a previously projected 4.5°C rise in air temperature by 2100 is no longer plausible.
Is Europe’s renewables boom enough?
However, several EU powerhouses are still lagging behind when it comes to the transition. Last month, Italy was accused of “climate neglect” after announcing it plans to postpone the permanent shutdown of its coal-fired power plants – often described as the dirtiest form of energy – until 2038, 13 years later than the initial deadline.
The Netherlands, despite generating more solar per capita than any other country in the EU, also remains heavily reliant on fossil fuels, particularly gas. The country’s stagnant rollout of large-scale wind farms means it risks missing its legally-binding target to reduce emissions by 55 per cent by 2030, compared to pre-industrial levels.
“Protecting human lives, businesses and economies from extreme heat and the many other soaring costs of climate change is core business for every nation, and it starts with kicking the fossil fuel addiction much faster,” Stiell says.
“It also reinforces the need to invest more in building resilience to climate impacts, whether extreme heat, mega-floods, wildfires or droughts, which are also hitting food production and prices.”
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