Revealed: Government quietly dropped plan to prepare England for wildfires
The UK government has abandoned a planned wildfire risk management program despite recent record-breaking heatwaves and fires. Environmental advocates criticize the decision, noting that fire services currently lack the necessary protective equipment to handle increasing climate-related threats.
Why it matters
This highlights a significant gap in climate adaptation policy, leaving the UK vulnerable to escalating wildfire risks as extreme weather events become more frequent.
A wildfire in Suffolk in July as the UK experienced a record-breaking number of fires. A wildfire in Suffolk in July as the UK experienced a record-breaking number of fires. Wildfires Revealed: Government quietly dropped plan to prepare England for wildfires FOI request shows wildfire risk scheme scrapped, as survey highlights many fire services lack proper protective gear
Prefer the Guardian on Google The government quietly scrapped plans to prepare the countryside in England for wildfires, it has been revealed. This was despite new data showing fire crews do not have the proper protective gear to tackle them.
This summer has been a potent reminder of the scale of the threat posed by the climate crisis, with the UK experiencing record-breaking wildfires after punishingly hot and dry weather turned large parts of the countryside into a tinderbox.
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