Climate change will cause extreme weather

As climate change continues, people will see greater and greater extremes of weather, according to one expert.

The government’s outgoing chief scientific adviser Sir John Beddington has warned that the effects of climate change are already being felt in the UK, which has been subject to some unseasonal weather as of late.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, the expert said: "In a sense we have moved from the idea of global warming to the idea of climate change, and that is rather important. Temperatures are increasing but the thing that is going to happen is that we are going to see much more variability in our weather.”

He added that people only need to look at the last few years of weather in the UK to see how climate change is already starting to manifest itself.

Sir John noted that there were “massive problems” with the increasing population, regarding food, water and energy security. Climate change, he said, would exacerbate these issues.

The expert suggested that there would be “significant” climate change over the next 20 to 25 years due to the global emissions of the past.

However, he added that there were some uncertainties when it comes to the analysis of climate and climate change. These issues, however, are “completely outweighed” by the enormous body of evidence that shows what is happening, and is currently happening in the way that climate models predict.

"For example, the Arctic is heating up vastly faster than other parts of the world - this is exactly what the climate scientists are predicting,” the expert said.

This came as the UK was hit by freezing cold weather and deep snow in areas, illustrating the expert’s point. Thousands of homes across the UK lost power and many roads were impossible.