MP calls for ban on disposable barbecues after moorland fires
HALIFAX’S MP has called for a ban on the sale of disposable barbecues in Parliament after several wildfires on Marsden Moor were blamed on the products.
Holly Lynch (Labour) called for the ban and said the moors were crucial to Yorkshire’s ecosystem.
According to Ms Lynch, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service has attended 75 wildfires this year and hundreds of smaller fires on the moors. Just last week there were two wildfires on Marsden Moor.
She said: “Whilst these stats are for wildfires more generally, we know a significant number are caused by careless and reckless use of disposable barbecues on our moorland.
“For example, during the space of a single weekend between the 26th and 27th of February, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service had to respond to a barbecue which had been lit by a group in a campervan next to moorland on Marsden Moor near Huddersfield. They also attended a fire caused by a barbecue on New Hay Road in Scammonden and a third barbecue incident at Bruncluf car park.”
Between 2019 and 2020, there were 240 accidental fires caused by barbecues across England although the number is expected to be higher due to the number of fires for which no cause has been identified.
The MP went on to list a number of other fires such as the large one on March 3 at Brimham Rocks near Harrogate. According to the National Trust, disposable barbecues should not be used on moorland due to the fire risk they present.
Ms Lynch also raised the issue of budget cuts which have impacted WYFRS and said the ‘frontline was already stretched to breaking’ and fire services which needed to pull in national firefighting resources or support from their neighbours are expected to ‘pick up the bill’ for the help. She also pointed to the leading role retailers are already playing in preventing the sale of the disposable barbecues. The Co-op has stopped sales of the barbecues within one mile of moors, Aldi has stopped their sale completely with Waitrose set to follow them.
Robbie Moore (Con), the MP for Keighley, also voiced his support for the ban but said it needed to go further and target other fire risks like sky lanterns. He said: “Of course it is not just disposable barbecues, there are also other products that cause equal amounts of havoc and I just want to touch on sky lanterns which I am absolutely behind banning sky lanterns in their complete entirety.
“When we let off a sky lantern, who knows where that sky lantern is eventually going to land and to drop.
“Of course, sometimes they fall not just on moorlands but fall in fields still alight in some cases and can cause huge amounts of damage to farm animals.”
Mr Moore also discussed the environmental impacts of the disposable barbecues as they contain a number of unrecyclable materials. He also pointed to the waste they leave behind such as shards of metal which can cause ‘havoc’ among livestock.
The Labour opposition spokesperson, Mark Amesbury MP, also voiced his support for the ban, including the ban on sky lanterns.
Victoria Prentis, Minister of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the government would commission research into the effects of disposable barbecues on moorland fires.
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