UK a ‘tinderbox’, says Burnham, as he calls in military and bans disposable barbecues – UK politics live

Ed Davey, leader of the the Liberal Democrats, on Friday called for Andy Burnham to reconvene Cobra over the extreme heat and wildfires. “The country is burning – devastating wild fires in the Midlands and the New Forest, hospitals dangerously overheating and the heat’s impact on our railways – and Andy Burnham’s only solution so far seems to be preventing the sale of disposable barbecues,” Davey said in a statement. Burnham had convened an emergency Cobra meeting on Wednesday. On Friday he announced that he has called in the military and temporarily banned on disposable barbecues to combate the wildfires currently burning through the country. “With the fifth hottest day on record, and Britain’s fifth heatwave of the year, we’re well past that. Burnham needs to reconvene Cobra immediately and set out a proper plan. That plan needs to fully meet this moment, a proper strategy to make the UK climate-ready for this summer and beyond,” Davey said.

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