Ministers urge City of London to act over swimmers in Hampstead Heath wildlife ponds

Exclusive: Local authority asked what steps it is taking after hordes of splashing revellers seen disturbing nesting birds

Ministers have written to the City of London demanding it stop people from swimming in a protected pond on Hampstead Heath, after disturbing scenes of cygnets and eggs being disrupted went viral on social media.

Swans and their 12-day-old cygnets were disturbed by hordes of splashing revellers in the north London park on Monday as temperatures reached a record 35C in the capital. In one video, a swan was seen poking an unhatched egg with its beak after it fell into the water during the chaos.