Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of extreme weather related to climate change since 1 January 2020.

The UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Health Effects of Climate Change report estimated that heat-related mortality from climate change and related socio-economic change in England could cost approximately £6.8 billion per year in the 2020s, rising to £14.7 billion per year in the 2050s.

The Department is supporting the improvement of National Health Service sites in order to reduce these impacts by investing £30 billion over the next five years in maintenance and repair, alongside £5 billion which has been allocated specifically to address the most critical building issues.

For estimating future costs of extreme weather, decisions on key Government spending are subject to clear requirements through the Green Book. This includes supplementary guidance which covers the impacts of climate change, and which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-book-supplementary-guidance-environment

This ensures that policies, programmes, and projects are resilient to the effects and future costs of climate change, and that such effects are being taken fully into account when appraising policy options.