England faces widespread drought as July becomes driest on record

71.3% of England is in drought after July, the driest month on record since 1836; the National Drought Group added regions to drought status, bringing 45 million people into drought areas and over 27 million under water-use restrictions as heatwaves persist. Amber health alerts remain, wildfire risk rises, and farmers warn of poor yields, with officials pushing on-site irrigation measures while climate scientists link the drought to warming and El Niño.