Reuters reports that a wildfire “tore through a historic forest near Paris”, forcing roads to close and the use of water-bombing aircraft. It notes that the region is suffering its third heatwave this summer, with “tinder-dry vegetation and high temperatures fuelling blazes”. Al Jazeera reports that the wildfires broke out near Fontainebleau, around 60km south-east of Paris, and by Monday morning had scorched more than 800 hectares of land. CNN notes: “Wildfires are not unusual in Europe, but the climate crisis is driving hotter, drier weather, which is setting the stage for fiercer fire seasons. They are also happening earlier in the year and are of growing intensity.” The Associated Press reports that French president Emmanuel Macron has said that all means were being used to fight the fire of “exceptional scale”. It adds that the fire near Paris is among several burning in western Europe as “the region bakes under its third red-alert heat wave this year”.

Relatedly, the Guardian reports that a British couple among those killed in Spanish wildfires has been named as Pete and Fran Gillam after DNA was used to identify them. BBC News notes that the wildfires left 13 people dead in Almeria province. A separate piece in the Guardian quotes Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, who said: “A third of all the land that burned in Europe last year was here in Spain. That’s not just down to the fires that have traditionally happened; it’s also due to a worsening because of climate change that’s happening across the Iberian peninsula and especially in Spain.” Le Monde visualises the extent of the wildfires across Europe in recent weeks through a series of charts.

MORE ON EUROPE

• Reuters reports that 6.3 gigawatts (GW) of French nuclear power was offline due to the heatwave, creating a gap equivalent to around 14% of national demand.
• Analysis in the Guardian explores how “unusually warm rivers affect French nuclear power plants”. 
• ReNews reports that the European Commission has approved a €63bn French state aid scheme to support offshore wind.
• A piece in the climate-sceptic Daily Telegraph previews the upcoming EU electrification strategy, which it claims is “beating a retreat from net-zero orthodoxy”. 
• Bloomberg reports that the Rhine River has fallen to its lowest levels in decades amid the heatwaves, limiting the flow of fuel to Germany and Switzerland.
• BusinessGreen covers new figures from thinktank Ember, showing that solar generated a quarter of EU power in June, with a record 52 terawatt hours (TWh). 

Bloomberg reports that last week, China’s electricity load reached a “record high” for the first time this year, hitting 1,500 gigawatts (GW) according to the National Energy Administration (NEA). The outlet adds that the load has risen by 150GW since the start of July, an increase roughly equivalent to Japan’s power load, according to the NEA. It says electricity demand from “internet data services” rose 44.6% in the first five months of the year, while “charging and battery-swapping services” recorded growth of 56.8%, highlighting “strong demand from parts of the digital and low-carbon economy”. The NEA cites above-average temperatures as a “direct factor” driving up electricity demand, according to industry news outlet BJX News. The outlet says that every 1C increase in China’s average summer temperature raises electricity demand by 40 to 50GW, while “prolonged heatwaves will further increase power consumption”.

MORE ON CHINA:

• The NDRC allocated 30m yuan ($4.4m) to support Hebei province following severe rainstorms and flooding, according to Xinhua.
• The MEE and the NDRC have issued the 15th “five-year plan” for ecological and environmental monitoring, reports BJX News.
• China’s 15th “five-year plan” for national health encourages climate-change health adaptation actions, reports the 21st Century Business Herald.
• People’s Daily publishes an article under the byline Guo Jiping – indicating the views of party leadership on international affairs – saying that China’s actions in addressing climate change reflect the Communist Party’s “respect for human development”.
• A Global Times editorial says that China’s “high-quality green manufacturing sector will be greatly helpful” for Europe’s energy transition.
• The Financial Times: “Australians ‘going gangbusters’ on Chinese batteries in renewable energy shift.”

The Times reports that incoming prime minister Andy Burnham must tackle high energy costs in the UK as a “day-one priority”, according to a group of lobbyists and thinktanks. It continues that energy costs could be cut by a fifth and the economy given a £130bn boost by 2050 if a suite of levies were shifted off bills, according to a report from the Confederation of British ​Industry (CBI) and Energy UK. Reuters adds that the report suggests 40% of firms are cutting investment in the UK due to high energy costs, with electricity prices in the country 45% higher than the G7 median. Bloomberg says the report calls for legacy renewable subsidy costs to be paid via general taxation to “lower electricity bills, strengthen industry and support economic growth”. The Sun notes that the “three-pronged” approach suggested by the study also calls for reforms to the energy system and support for business electrification. 

Separately, the Guardian reports that the North Sea oil industry has “made a last-ditch attempt to curry favour with the Labour government by appealing to Andy Burnham’s reindustrialisation agenda just days before he is expected to become Britain’s next prime minister”. It adds that oil lobbyists have written to more than 400 Labour MPs to call on the new government leaders to allow more oil and gas drilling in UK waters. In an article featured on its frontpage, the Daily Telegraph says energy secretary Ed Miliband “wants to approve drilling in the North Sea to calm market jitters about his possible appointment as chancellor and prove he is no net-zero ‘zealot’”. 

MORE ON UK

• The Guardian reports that most UK media coverage of record-breaking heatwaves in June failed to mention climate change, according to analysis of nearly 2,500 articles.
• In a piece featured on its frontpage, the Guardian reports that the UK is in the grip of a “firewave”, as extreme heat produces ideal conditions for wildfires.
• The Times covers plans by the Green Party to propose new legislation that would introduce a legal maximum workplace temperature in Britain. 
• The Guardian reports that the government’s plan to protect and restore nature in England by 2030 has been called “pathetic” and “completely insufficient”. 
• BBC News reports that there have been more days that reached at least 30C in 2026 than there were in 1976, previously “the benchmark for hot summers”.
• The Daily Mail reports that solar panels have been blamed for a “spate of fires on school roofs”, with a call for “urgent safety checks”. 

The Associated Press reports that “another week of blistering heat will bring even more health risks in the coming days” in the US. It adds that the National Weather Service is predicting more than 90 temperature records across the US will be broken this week by Wednesday, most of which will be overnight heat records. Le Monde reports that the record-breaking heatwave is already affecting the central US, with temperature records broken from the northern plains to the Rocky Mountains region. It adds that the heat is hindering efforts to fight large wildfires in Colorado and Utah. The article notes: “Around the world, heatwaves are becoming more common and intense due to climate change, primarily caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas and emission of greenhouse gases.”

MORE ON US

• Politico covers comments by New York’s Democratic governor Kathy Hochul as she defended her decision to “walk back” the state’s emissions targets.
• The New York Times reports that electric vehicle chargers are “proliferating in southern states as…businesses try to lure customers”.

The Guardian reports that Great Britain’s grid operator, the National Energy Systems Operator (NESO), says the system “operated securely and the frequency and voltage of the power system had remained within statutory limits” during recent heatwaves. However, the newspaper says NESO has brought in independent investigators, following accusations that its staff were involved in a “cover-up over blackout risk”. It adds: “The government-owned energy system operator will face the scrutiny of an external legal firm after a whistleblower claimed that control room staff were warned against leaving a paper trail relating to efforts to stabilise the power system during record high temperatures in late June.” The Daily Telegraph reports that the independent investigation ordered by NESO follows claims by shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho.

Reuters columnist Gavin Maguire writes that “if the US power sector were undergoing a mid-year physical, the doctor’s verdict would be encouraging”. He notes that total electricity output for the first six months of 2026 was 2,234 terawatt hours (TWh), the highest ever for a half-year period, up nearly 3% on the previous year. Maguire says that clean power is approaching “primary status”, due to the strength of solar power and the continued shrinkage of coal. He concludes: “Natural gas remains indispensable, but the direction of travel is unmistakable: with each passing year, the US grid looks ⁠a little less ​fossil-fueled and a little more clean-powered.”

MORE COMMENT

• In the Financial Times, MIT professor Carlo Ratti has a comment under the headline: “Yes, peer review has problems. But Trump’s solution is dangerous.”
• The Daily Mail gives a full page to climate-sceptic commentator Ross Clark, who dismisses figures showing 2,700 “excess deaths” during recent heatwaves as “hysterical hot air”.
• Stephen Phipson, chief executive of manufacturing trade association Make UK writes in the Times that “the cost of energy is now an existential threat to UK manufacturers”.
• In the Times, climate-sceptic commentator Melanie Philips argues that Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch’s “hardline stance on net-zero goals…is an overdue purge”. 
• In the climate-sceptic Daily Telegraph, Conservative peer David Frost argues that “net-zero isn’t conservatism. It has more in common with communism.”

This edition of the Daily Briefing was written by Molly Lempriere, with contributions from Henry Zhang and Anika Patel. It was edited by Simon Evans.

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