Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the steps necessary to protect communities from any potential increase in the likelihood of wildfires taking place in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme, (b) Staffordshire and (c) England as a result of a warming planet.

The Government recognises that the impact of climate change is likely to increase and intensify fire incidents in England and Wales - further impacting fire and rescue service’s (FRS) resources, capacity, and strategical response.

As the lead government department for wildfire, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) maintains regular engagement with other government departments including the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and Cabinet Office on this national risk. This is alongside the department’s work with national bodies including the National Fire Chiefs Council and England and Wales Wildfire Forum to monitor and review sector led improvements and mitigations.

Since 2024 we have also funded a National Resilience Wildfire Advisor to assess what additional wildfire national capabilities might be needed to increase resilience to the wildfire risk and to ensure coordination of approaches across the sector.