Calls to ban disposable barbecues in England and Wales over wildfire risk
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- NFU deputy president Paul Tompkins urged retailers to pull disposable barbecues from sale and local authorities to prohibit their use, citing the worst drought since 1976 and climate-crisis heatwaves that have damaged harvests.
- The Country Land and Business Association backed the barbecue ban but simultaneously demanded England lift its ban on controlled burning, arguing it removes vegetation that fuels wildfires — a practice currently outlawed to protect wildlife and reduce carbon emissions.
- Over 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres) have burned across every UK region this year, with blazes hitting the Rhondda Valley in Wales, the Cairngorms in Scotland, the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland, areas near Aberdeen, the Brecon Beacons, and a Suffolk fire that came within miles of the Sizewell B nuclear plant.
- Labour MP Jon Pearce (High Peak, Derbyshire) wrote to retailers this week asking them to stop selling disposable barbecues; most major supermarkets have already halted sales, though products remain widely available in smaller shops, hardware/DIY stores, and online.
- The UK government said there are no plans for a blanket ban on disposable barbecues, noting that councils already have power to prohibit them in high-risk areas and that strict product safety rules apply.
- Conservationist Ben Goldsmith rejected claims that rewilding increases wildfire risk, pointing to beaver reintroductions that have boosted surrounding land's water-storage capacity and helped avert the worst drought impacts.
Why it matters: Despite cross-party calls from farmers, firefighters, the Liberal Democrats, and many Labour MPs, the government has refused a blanket ban, shifting pressure onto local councils and retailers — most major supermarkets have already complied. The CLA's simultaneous demand to lift England's controlled burning ban exposes a fundamental split among the very groups demanding action on flammable landscapes.
