Wales sets out wildfire resilience priorities after Merthyr Tydfil summit
A Welsh Government summit in Merthyr Tydfil has set out priority work on wildfire preparedness, land management, response planning and risk monitoring ahead of the 2027 season.
Wales has set out a programme of wildfire-resilience work after a summit in Merthyr Tydfil brought together more than 40 representatives from public bodies, private organisations, volunteers and other stakeholders. The Welsh Government said the meeting, held on 22 October, focused on lessons from the summer’s fires and on preparations for what it expects could be another difficult spring and summer in 2027.
The programme is a set of priorities for further work with partners, rather than a list of measures already in place. Some proposals still require rapid development, and the Welsh Government has said it will provide further updates to the Senedd as information becomes available.
National coordination and a shared risk picture
One priority is multi-agency work to support a strengthened All-Wales Wildfire Board. The intended role is to bring partners together nationally before next year’s wildfire season, covering early intervention, risk management, public communications and coordination between agencies.
The Welsh Government also plans a pan-Wales approach to monitoring resilience risks in spring and summer. Its aim is to give government departments and the responder community a consolidated picture of the risks they face, so that planning and resources can be prioritised. The announcement does not set out a completed monitoring system or a timetable for its introduction.
Both strands place the emphasis on preparation before a fire develops. They are intended to improve how different organisations identify risk, share information and organise a response, rather than to describe a new emergency service or a change to the duties of individual fire and rescue services.
Land management and local capacity
The summit’s follow-up work will include a rapid evidence review into the role of land management in wildfire resilience. A separate review is planned for the Heather and Grass Burning Code. The Welsh Government has not pre-judged the outcome of either review, so neither should be read as an immediate change to land-management rules.
A proposed pan-Wales register would allow farmers and landowners to indicate whether they are willing to offer vehicles, equipment and local knowledge during a firefighting response. Participation is intended to be structured, and the proposal does not mean people would be expected to intervene in a fire themselves.
Other priority work includes bringing in international expertise to support training and preparation for Welsh fire and rescue services. Ministers also plan to review evidence and options with those services on improved health monitoring and decontamination procedures. The statement gives these as areas for development, not as completed changes to operational practice.
Aerial capability remains a question for wider work
The Welsh Government said it would continue working with the UK Government and the other devolved administrations on a nationwide response to the current lack of UK aerial firefighting assets. It has not announced that aircraft have been secured or that an aerial firefighting service has been created.
Further preventative work is also planned, including renewed public engagement about wildfire risks and how they can be reduced. Taken together, the priorities set an agenda for coordination, evidence gathering and readiness ahead of 2027. Their practical effect will depend on the work completed with partners and on the further updates promised to the Senedd.
