UN report warns of alarming temperature rise within five years

There’s a 98 per cent likelihood that at least one of the next five years will be the hottest on record, due to the combination of El Niño and climate change, according to a new report from the UN’s meteorological agency.

The World Meteorological Organization also warns there’s a 66 per cent chance the annual global surface temperature will temporarily exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for at least one of the next five years.

If that happens, it’ll be the first time such a temperature has been recorded in human history.

It has prompted warnings from climate scientists about an increased risk of bushfires and accelerated destruction of the Great Barrier Reef.