Farmers Demand Disposable BBQ Ban Amid UK Wildfire Surge
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- National Farmers Union deputy president Paul Tompkins called for a temporary ban on disposable barbecues in England and Wales, warning that 'a stray match or single spark' can wipe out harvests amid the worst drought in many areas since 1976.
- MP Jon Pearce (High Peak, Derbyshire) wrote to retailers this week asking them to stop selling disposable barbecues; most big supermarkets have already pulled them, but smaller shops, hardware and DIY stores, and online sellers continue to stock them.
- Wildfires have burned an estimated 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres) across every UK region this year, with recent blazes in the Rhondda Valley, Cairngorms, and a Suffolk fire that came within a few miles of the Sizewell B nuclear plant.
- The Country Land and Business Association, led by president Gavin Lane, backed the disposable BBQ ban while simultaneously calling on Natural England to lift the existing ban on controlled burning so landowners can pre-emptively clear wildfire fuel.
- Financier and conservationist Ben Goldsmith rebuffed claims that rewilding is driving wildfire risk, pointing to beaver reintroductions that have boosted surrounding land's ability to store water during the drought.
- While firefighters, the Liberal Democrats, and many Labour MPs back the ban, a government spokesperson said there are 'no plans to introduce a blanket ban' — instead giving councils power to prohibit them in high-risk areas.
Why it matters: The split between the government's refusal of a blanket ban and demands from the NFU, CLA, firefighters, and opposition parties shifts enforcement onto individual retailers and councils just as the UK heads deeper into its worst drought since 1976. Most supermarkets have already self-policed, leaving smaller shops, hardware stores, and online sellers as the weak point — a gap farmers say has already cost them machinery, livestock, and ruined harvests. Parallel to the disposable-BBQ ban, the CLA's demand to legalize controlled burning opens a second regulatory fight with Natural England, which currently prohibits it to protect habitats.
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