THE government has been criticised over its “deeply disappointing” plan to adapt Britain to the impacts of climate change.

Critics said that the five-year plans detailed in the latest National Adaptation Programme report (NAP3) “really lack in ambition.”

Ministers claim it would boost resilience and help protect people from the damaging impacts of climate change.

But Green Party MP Caroline Lucas told Channel 4 News that many of the plans in the documents were “pre-announced about two years ago” and are “being recycled now.”

She said: “We’ve got the government talking about doing research to work out why and how buildings overheat instead of actually putting in place the measures to address it.”

London Climate Resilience Review chairwoman Emma Howard Boyd said the programme “should be a wake-up call and yet it seems they are taking a nap.

“NAP3 won’t convince anyone that we are ready and that is a dangerous, missed opportunity.”

Local Government Association environment spokeswoman Linda Taylor also warned that the plan “does not deliver the overall funding and support necessary to enable urgent acceleration of local adaptation action.”

The NAP3 said the Department for Education will carry out annual climate risk assessments from this year to “identify the highest-risk settings and provide guidance on how to reduce the risk” while also prioritising “nature-based solutions” to issues such as flooding and overheating in education settings by 2025.

The report also highlighted a pilot for a dedicated climate data tool to help councils plan and adapt to local challenges.

The Climate Change Committee, which advises and monitors government progress on the issue, previously warned that ministers had not made enough progress in adapting to rising global temperatures.