2016 'likely to be warmest year on record'

Global mean temperatures in 2016 are expected to be between 0.72 and 0.96C above the long term average of 14C.

Global temperatures in 2016 are likely to be as warm as, or even warmer than in 2015, which will be the warmest on record, Britain's Met Office says.

The weather forecasters said global mean temperatures in 2016 are expected to be between 0.72 and 0.96C above the long term (1961-1990) average of 14C.

"This forecast suggests that by the end of 2016, we will have seen three record, or near-record years in a row for global temperatures," Adam Scaife, head of long-range prediction at the Met Office, said in a statement on Thursday.

The Met Office said man-made global warming combined with an impact from the El Nino weather phenomenon was driving the high temperatures.

"The forecast is based on the key drivers of global climate, but it doesn't include random events, such as large volcanic eruptions, which can cause a temporary cooling effect," the Met Office said.

The forecasts put global warming about half way towards the two-degree rise scientists say temperatures must be kept below to stave off the worst effects of climate change such as floods, droughts and rising sea levels.

Last week negotiators from 195 countries signed a landmark deal in Paris with an aim to keep the rise in temperatures to "well below" 2C above pre-industrial levels.