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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department takes to (a) prevent, (b) tackle and (c) deal with the aftermath of forest fires.

The Home Office has overall responsibility for wildfires and publishes data which shows most fires in grassland, woodland and crops are set deliberately.

Data provided by the Home Office is analysed and published by the Forestry Commission in addition to guidance that explains how owners can 1) reduce the risk of wildfire damaging their woodlands and 2) help woodlands recover from forest fires. The Forestry Commission holds workshops on Wildfire Prevention; over 150 land managers from the private and public sector have attended these. The Forestry Commission has an incident specific contingency plan for dealing with severe wildfire. In January 2019 this plan was tested in a major exercise which included staff from Defra, the Environment Agency, Public Health England, Natural England, Avon and Somerset Police, Forestry England and Forest Research.

Defra are currently undertaking a review of wildfire in relation to moorland and peatland management recognising that woodland habitats are a factor in such wildfires.