THE soaring temperatures being enjoyed by Scots this week are set to continue into the weekend, and maybe even next week.

Thursday saw a high of 31.9C, making it the hottest day in the country for 23 years, and while today may not see reach those heights, it could still see the mercury hit 27C in parts of the country.

STV weather presenter Sean Batty tweeted: “Heatwave conditions set to continue for most of the country through the weekend and next week with temperatures widely in the mid 20s.

“Apart from an isolated shower off the mountains in the far north there’s no rain in the foreseeable. Not great news for farmers. #ScotScorchio.”

Healthcare services remain on hand in case they are needed to mitigate the harmful effects of a heatwave, with the Met Office’s heat-health watch alert still at level two. Level two is triggered as soon as the risk of a heatwave is 60% or above for threshold temperatures being reached “in one or more regions on at least two consecutive days and the intervening night”.

Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said: “We are going to see a continuation of the current warm spell but the temperatures over the next few days are not likely to be the warmest of the year so far.

“I think for now temperatures have peaked and we are not expecting to see any records today.

“We will begin to have a slightly fresher feel, bringing the temperatures down, not by much, by one or two degrees.”

The NHS has warned that vulnerable people in society may be at risk from the soaring temperatures.

Animals may be at risk too.

The RSPCA has called on pet owners to look after their animals – highlighting especially not to leave dogs in hot cars – while measures have been introduced to mitigate the risks posed by the heat to a polar bear cub in the Highlands.

Six-month-old Hamish, who was named after an internet poll in April this year, lives with his mother at the Highland Wildlife Park at Kincraig, near Aviemore.

Hamish’s mother Victoria is wily enough to know that she has to keep herself cool in the heat, but staff at the park are less confident that her cub knows to do so.

Both the polar bears have been given frozen treats, such as pieces of fruit inside blocks of ice, and kept within shaded areas during the day.

Meanwhile, Scotland’s big summer music event, TRNSMT, kicked off in Glasgow yesterday, with around 40,000 revellers enjoying their favourite acts while basking in the sunshine.

The Stereophonics headlined the festival’s first day, which saw earlier performances by Jessie J, Kodaline, James Bay, The Script and Tom Walker. With a minimum temperature of 25C (77F), music fans were applying the sunscreen as they enjoyed the acts from two stages at Glasgow Green.

The hot weather is also expected to continue into the rest of the UK – and cause problems for those countries too.

In Northern Ireland – where temperatures could hit 31C (87.8F) over the next couple of days – the water board has said demand has begun to outstrip supply and has forced them to introduce a a hosepipe ban from 6pm last night.

In England, roads were melting under the heat yesterday.

Gritters have been deployed in some areas, spreading crushed rock dust onto melting roads to create a non-stick layer between the surface and vehicles.

Some train routes were disrupted after temperatures on the tracks reached 49C (120.2F), leading them to expand and bend.

This week is the first time since 2013 that all four nations in the UK have seen temperatures of 30C or above.