England and Wales have just endured the wettest 12 months since records began in 1766. There have been 51 inches of rain since last April. Yesterday the Environment Agency issued ten flood warnings. Climate scientists say they can't pin the blame on global warming for any weather event - but believe that the floods fit the pattern they predict of higher winter rainfall in parts of the UK because of rising temperatures.
The UK government is committed to cutting by 20% domestic emissions of the gases believed to be fuelling climate change. Other EU nations agree that large cuts are needed, but the world's biggest producer of so-called greenhouse gases, the USA, has been resisting strict measures.
Climate change in the US is something of a party political issue, with the Democrats largely accepting the majority science view that climate is being changed by man, and many Republicans believing the minority view that climate change is a natural phenomenon.
The Republicans are strongly influenced by big businesses who fear the impact of emissions controls on their profitability. And President Bush has just reneged on a promise to introduce emission limits on power stations. As one observer put it this week, "President Bush won't even acknowledge the existance of climate change until Texas becomes one of the Great Lakes".
The Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott believes this proves the UK was right to press ahead with a compromise agreement with the US on climate just before President Bush took power. That deal was scuppered after a row with the French who said the US was being let off too lightly. Prescott says recent events prove a weak agreement would have been better than none.
European leaders have been meeting in Stockholm, and the US position on climate change will have been discussed behind the scenes. The climate issue may present an opportunity for the Prime Minister Tony Blair to offer the sort of world leadership that appears lacking.
