A CLOTHING retailer has called on Scots businesses to allow men to bare their legs this summer as the sizzling heatwave is set to continue.

With forecasts predicting temperatures in the high 20°’s until late August, Debenhams urged firms to let men ‘liberate their legs’ following new research revealing that nearly half suffer from anxiety at the thought of going to work in full length trousers and jackets.

The research, which was commissioned by the retailer to unearth men’s attitudes to summer work wear, found that despite worrying about overheating in the office, a third don’t bare their legs due to office policy, with one in ten feeling nervous that their boss would complain if they arrived at the office in shorts.

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Nearly a half of the men questioned revealed that they have never worn shorts in the office, with a third saying they didn’t feel they looked professional enough and that shorts were for holidays not the office.

Men in London are the most worried about being too hot in the office, with those aged from 25 to 34 in the capital most likely to turn up to the office in shorts.

While those aged between 55 and 64 in Scotland are least likely to get their legs out.

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Savile Row tailor and Debenhams menswear designer, Patrick Grant, has been styling men for over 13 years and understands the challenges during the summer months.

He said: “Its boiling out there. Only a madman wears long trousers in this heat if he doesn’t have to. And it is perfectly possible to look smart in shorts.

"Think Field Marshal Montgomery in the desert of North Africa, or the Bermudan Police. Tailored shorts can and do look smart, if worn correctly."