LONDON — Britain’s latest heatwave is doing more than pushing temperatures towards record levels. It is exposing a much bigger question: is the country preparing for the climate it is actually going to experience?

Parts of England are facing an amber extreme-heat warning, with temperatures forecast to approach 38C, while drought conditions, wildfires and pressure on infrastructure are adding to the disruption.

The problem is no longer simply that summers are becoming uncomfortable. Extreme heat can affect healthcare, transport, water supplies, agriculture, energy demand and economic productivity at the same time.

That means Britain's response cannot rely entirely on emergency measures whenever temperatures rise.

Climate adaptation needs to become part of ordinary infrastructure planning.

Buildings designed to retain heat during Britain's traditionally cooler summers can become dangerous during prolonged heatwaves. Railways, roads and electricity systems can also face additional pressure when temperatures remain unusually high for several days.

The current crisis has already triggered calls for stronger government action, including measures to reduce wildfire risks and better prepare essential public services for increasingly frequent summer heat.

There is also an economic argument. Businesses lose productivity when workers cannot operate safely in extreme temperatures, while disruption to transport, tourism and agriculture can create costs far beyond the immediate weather event.

Britain should stop treating extreme heat as an exceptional emergency and start treating it as a predictable national risk.

That does not mean abandoning efforts to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. It means accepting that some climate impacts are already being experienced and preparing homes, hospitals, transport networks, water systems and workplaces accordingly.

The real test of climate policy is therefore not simply how quickly Britain can respond when the temperature rises.

It is whether the country is better prepared before the next heatwave arrives.