Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the fire risk of alcohol-based hand sanitisers being stored in large quantities in buildings throughout the UK; and what steps she is taking to educate the public on the fire risks of alcohol-based hand-rubs.

The Home Office has considered the fire risks associated with alcohol-based hand sanitisers in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC). The NFCC issued a press statement setting out the low risk of such products causing a fire and the need for a spark to come into contact with the substance.

Where alcohol-based hand sanitisers are stored in large quantities, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires the responsible person for that premises to consider the fire risks and ensure these are mitigated to as low as reasonably practicable.