The Houses of Parliament wreathed in fog: Weather forecasters have been told not to show favouritism to London when reporting the forecast Press Association

STORM clouds are brewing over London thanks to weather presenters who have been ordered to avoid mentioning the capital.

The city’s 7.56 million inhabitants regularly hear more about the weather in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides (population 26,000) than the nation’s biggest city, admits one whistle-blowing weather girl.

GMTV presenter Clare Nasir has revealed that bosses have issued a diktat telling her and colleagues not to focus too much on London in case viewers from other parts of the county complain about favouritism.

She said: “Almost all the weather programmes are broadcast out of London, but you will rarely find weather presenters saying the word ‘London’.

“I find myself giving the Isle of Harris [in the Outer Hebrides] much more air time than the capital.

“Sometimes you would say it’s politically correct, but I think it’s hard to get a balance when you have two minutes to cover the whole country.”

"Sometimes you would say it’s politically correct, but I think it’s hard to get a balance when you have two minutes to cover the whole country"

Nasir, 39, said that there was one good reason to devote more time to the countryside, adding: “You can argue that city workers in offices don’t need to know the weather in the same way people who live off the land do, so perhaps we have got it right.”

In case the capital is passed over on the TV forecast, the outlook for the coming week is warm but miserable.

Temperatures were set to hit 22C today, but heavy showers forecast for this evening are likely to remain for the week.

Met Office spokeswoman Sarah Holland said: “It was a really nice day yesterday and temperatures hit 26.6C in Gravesend but the rain has returned.

“The weather will be changeable all week, with sunshine and showers on Wednesday and Thursday, with the possibility of heavier and more persistent rain.

“Temperatures on Thursday will be up to 20C, which is good for the first week of September. On Friday it will be slightly cooler with a bit of rain around, but the early indications are that Saturday will be fairly dry and bright.”