Latest editorial
People watch a large wildfire in Lickey Hills Country Park on the edge of Birmingham, July 18, 2022
FIREFIGHTERS are warning that the UK is “woefully under-prepared” to tackle increasingly likely wildfires.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said there was a “dangerous” lack in strategy, planning and investment across the UK.
Job cuts and under resourcing of fire and rescue services has already resulted in firefighters stretched beyond limits at incidents in the past decade, said the union.
Emergency phone alerts could help Britain respond to rising wildfire risk, but Australia’s experience suggests they work best as part of a broader strategy, write ELLIOT CONVERY-FISHER and KATE PARKINS
Since 2010, one in five firefighter jobs has disappeared alongside 30% funding cuts — all while climate breakdown brings record blazes and flooding. It’s time to fund our fire service properly, writes FBU general secretary STEVE WRIGHT