Just 20 of 6,600 Defra staff working on climate adaptation amid drought and wildfires
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- Defra has just 20 staff out of 6,613 (0.3%) working on climate adaptation, according to a freedom of information request obtained by campaigner Guy Shrubsole, who called on new environment secretary Angela Eagle to boost staffing and funding.
- The Climate Change Adaptation Committee warned peak river flows could increase by up to 45%, water supply shortfalls may surpass 5bn litres daily, and the economic cost of failing to adapt could reach £60bn–£260bn annually by 2050 — 1% to 5% of UK GDP.
- The UK is entering its fifth heatwave of the summer, with drought covering almost three-quarters of the country and 966 wildfires recorded this year — including 458 in July alone.
- Andy Burnham has not mentioned the climate crisis, extreme heat, wildfires, or drought since taking office, drawing demands from the Wildlife Trusts and environmental NGOs to act within his first 100 days.
- The Fire Brigades Union is calling for 5,000 more firefighters, with general secretary Steve Wright noting the UK lacks dedicated fixed-wing water-bombing planes or specialist aerial firefighting aircraft used by European counterparts.
- No 10 announced Burnham would chair an emergency Cobra meeting on Wednesday, with temperatures forecast at 33C and up to 38C on Thursday.
- Friends of the Earth head of policy Mike Childs urged the government to accelerate the shift to clean energy and rule out new oil and gas developments including Rosebank and Jackdaw, plus a third Heathrow runway.
Why it matters: The 0.3% staffing ratio means the department explicitly tasked with environmental protection is operating without climate adaptation capacity even as the Adaptation Committee projects adaptation failures could cost up to £260bn annually by 2050. With 966 wildfires already this year and Burnham forced to chair Cobra meetings, the gap between crisis scale and government planning capacity is now impossible to ignore.
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