Authorities have recorded 1,017 wildfires in England and Wales so far this year, matching last year’s total, the National Fire Chiefs Council says. In response to the heightened risk, the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (DBIST) has advised that disposable barbecues “cannot be considered a safe product” in the current conditions and “must not be made available for sale either in store or online at the current time” across Great Britain. The measure covers England, Scotland and Wales but does not apply to Northern Ireland.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds described the steps as “common-sense” measures to protect lives and the environment. All retailers will receive guidance on the change, which will be kept under review, Burnham told the BBC. Burnham also said some of the active wildfires around the country were likely started by disposable barbecues.
The prime minister warned of the immediate danger, saying there were 37 fires across England and Wales at the time of his comments, four of them major incidents. He urged people to be cautious over the coming days: “Britain is a tinderbox right now. Setting a fire in any outdoor setting of any kind is a risk to other people’s homes, it’s a risk to other people’s lives, don’t do it, please don’t do it.” He added that the nation was heading into a difficult weekend.
Many large retailers and supermarkets had already paused sales of single-use grills under a voluntary framework agreed in 2023 between fire chiefs and the British Retail Consortium. That guidance recommended suspending sales when an extreme heat event is imminent or in response to “reasonable, evidence based” requests from local councils.
David Skaith, the elected Labour mayor for York and North Yorkshire, who has campaigned for a ban on single-use grills, welcomed the move and urged the prime minister to make it permanent. “We know the risks that disposable barbecues have been causing and to have a ban on them is much-needed, much-called-for and I hope it becomes long-term,” he said.
Burnham said he planned to commission firefighting aircraft similar to those used in other European countries and the US to help combat wildfires, and that plans were being drawn up for emergency financial support to assist fire services. “We have a fire and rescue service across the country that isn’t properly set up to deal with these incidents,” he said, adding that the UK lacks some of the capabilities it should have to fight these blazes. He paid tribute to the thousands of firefighters working in extremely difficult conditions, calling their work “back-breaking.”
Burnham’s comments came ahead of the appointment of Baroness Blake of Leeds as fire minister. Environmental group Friends of the Earth urged the prime minister to tackle the “root cause” of the climate emergency driving this summer’s extreme weather. They warned that without urgent action to cut carbon emissions, future heatwaves, droughts and wildfires will worsen and adaptation for future generations will become harder.
Burnham made the remarks during a visit to Stourbridge to see the aftermath of a severe blaze. The UK recorded its hottest day of the year on Thursday, and in some areas fires spread rapidly through dry grass, forcing residents to flee their homes. West Midlands Ambulance Service treated 54 casualties across eight different fires in the region; 19 people were taken to hospital for further treatment.
