Frosty weather and chilly homes cause more deaths each winter in the UK than some of the chilliest parts of Siberia, according to a study published this week in the British Medical Journal. Each year, some 50,000 more people die during the British winter than in the summer and many of those are directly linked to cold weather and inadequate heating provision in homes up and down the country.

Researchers examined historical temperature data, for the last 30 years to examine the link between temperature and death rates. While, flu has long been regarded as the biggest winter killer, the researchers concluded that over the last decade, it was only responsible for around two and a half percent of the 1,265 annual excess winter deaths per million people. According to the research, most deaths caused by the cold are from strokes and coronary thrombosis in people aged over 55 rather than flu. Apparently, the deaths are triggered by a thickening of the blood when people are exposed to the cold, and are often not attributed to the weather conditions.

Professor William Keatinge, of London's Queen Mary and Westfield College said: "Many people here simply do not take the cold seriously and appreciate the danger it poses. Simple things like wrapping up warm and keeping moving when hanging about in the cold really can save your life."

In his research, published in the British Medical Journal, Professor Keatinge argued more government money is needed to be put into tackling fuel poverty. This is a sentiment that was immediately echoed elsewhere upon publication of the report. Commenting, Friends Of The Earth Parliamentary Co-ordinator Martyn Williams said: "This research highlights once again the scandal of excess winter deaths in Britain. These are not primarily due to flu. They are a consequence of cold weather - and to the poor state of our housing stock compared to other European countries. The Government needs to strengthen its Fuel Poverty Strategy and set more ambitious targets, with the resources to back them up."

William Gillis, director of National Energy Action, a Newcastle-based national charity which combats fuel poverty added: "It's a scandal. We welcome the research in that it strengthens our argument which is that we believe it is cold, damp homes which are killing these people."