Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will order a comprehensive review of the trigger points on the Fire Severity Index on account of the current drought.

Natural England (NE) will work with the Met Office to review the operation of the Fire Severity Index, based on the best available evidence. It will consider in the light of this review whether any changes to the calibration of the Index need to be made in due course. NE will do this in collaboration with its fellow ‘relevant authorities’ (including national park authorities) who share its statutory role of giving directions to close areas of open access land when necessary.