As wildfires threaten parts of Europe, including areas around Bordeaux and Madrid, a new Matt Ridley commentary argues that Britain’s fire risk cannot be explained by weather alone. The piece says hot, dry conditions clearly make blazes more likely, but it contends that environmental policy and land management also play a major role in how easily fires start and spread.
The article links Britain’s current danger to drought affecting large parts of England and to vulnerable heathland landscapes such as those in Suffolk. In Ridley’s view, debate about wildfire causes has become too focused on climate change, while not paying enough attention to how vegetation is managed and how policy may leave more fuel on the ground.
Ridley also pushes back against the idea that worsening fire seasons automatically prove a global rise in wildfires. According to the description, he argues that wildfires are becoming less frequent worldwide even as the planet warms, using that point to challenge simple climate-only explanations for every major blaze.
Set against reports of extreme fire threats elsewhere in Europe, and criminal acts such as arson in Sicily, the column presents wildfire risk as a mix of weather, human actions and political choices. Its central claim is that Britain’s response should look not only at heat and drought, but also at the policy decisions that shape the landscape.
