UK Government Quietly Abandoned Wildfire Preparedness Plan, FOI Request Reveals

The UK government quietly scrapped a plan to prepare the English countryside for wildfires, according to information obtained through a freedom of information request. The decision came despite new survey data showing that many fire services across England lack the protective equipment needed to safely fight blazes of that kind.

The abandoned scheme had been intended to reduce wildfire risk in rural and semi-rural areas, which fire safety experts have increasingly flagged as vulnerable amid shifting weather patterns. Details of its cancellation emerged only after the FOI request forced disclosure, raising questions among campaigners about transparency in government risk planning.

The timing of the revelation is notable. This summer brought a stark reminder of the scale of wildfire risk in England, as record-breaking blazes swept through parts of the countryside following an unusually hot and dry spell. Large tracts of land, dried out by the extended heat, became highly flammable, and fire crews were called to tackle multiple significant incidents.

Equipment gaps highlighted

Alongside the cancelled scheme, the newly surfaced survey data points to a separate but related problem: numerous fire services do not have adequate protective gear specifically suited to wildfire conditions, which differ from structural fires in terms of heat exposure, duration and terrain.

Campaigners and opposition figures are likely to seize on the disclosure as evidence that preparedness for climate-related risks has not kept pace with the growing frequency of extreme weather events. Scientists have repeatedly linked the increasing likelihood of hot, dry summers in the UK to the broader effects of the climate crisis.

The government has not yet detailed why the scheme was dropped or whether any alternative measures have been put in place to address wildfire risk or the equipment shortfall identified by the survey.