Environment Secretary Angela Eagle has pledged that Labour will take decisive action to protect Britain from worsening wildfires, droughts and floods.
Writing in The Guardian, Eagle warned that this summer’s extreme weather demonstrated that climate change was already affecting communities, farmers and essential services across the country.
She said on X:
“The wildfires and drought we’ve seen this summer show how our climate is already changing.
“Other parties may refuse to accept the need to adapt to this new reality.
“But as Environment Secretary I will rise to the challenge.”
England and Wales have experienced their driest July in almost two centuries, while Britain is facing its third drought in five years.
Prolonged dry conditions and repeated heatwaves have contributed to destructive wildfires, including blazes that damaged homes and required firefighters to work in exceptionally dangerous conditions.
Eagle warned that extreme heat and drought could quickly be followed by intense rainfall and flash flooding as Britain experiences increasingly unpredictable weather.
She argued that politicians had a responsibility to be honest with the public about the scale of the challenge rather than dismissing the evidence or abandoning action to protect the environment.
Eagle criticised Reform UK’s deputy leader for telling people to “enjoy” the summer’s heatwaves and describing the government’s climate action as arrogant.
She said such comments were insulting to firefighters tackling wildfires, families whose lives had been disrupted and farmers whose crops and livelihoods had been damaged by drought.
Labour’s response will combine emergency preparedness with long-term action to make the country’s landscapes, farms and infrastructure more resilient.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham recently convened an emergency COBR meeting bringing together ministers, fire services, weather forecasters and other specialists to coordinate the national response.
The government is spending almost £100 million to strengthen Britain’s capacity to respond to wildfires and other extreme weather incidents.
A temporary ban on the sale of disposable barbecues has also been introduced to reduce the risk of preventable fires during exceptionally dry conditions.
Farmers are receiving a £65 million support package to help them manage drought pressures, protect crops, feed livestock and invest in greater resilience.
Planning rules are being changed to make it easier for farms to construct water-storage reservoirs, helping agricultural businesses prepare for hotter and drier summers.
Eagle also defended nature restoration as an essential part of protecting communities.
Healthy wetlands and peatlands can retain more water during droughts, slow the movement of water during heavy rain and act as natural barriers against fires.
She rejected Conservative claims that rewilding makes landscapes more vulnerable, arguing that decades of burning and damaging peatlands had reduced their ability to hold water and increased long-term risks.
Restoration projects such as the National Trust’s Holnicote estate in Somerset demonstrate how revived rivers and wetlands can keep landscapes greener during drought while reducing the threat of flooding.
Eagle said the answer to wildfires was not greater burning of the countryside but better environmental management and the restoration of damaged habitats.
Labour’s approach recognises that reducing emissions and adapting to unavoidable changes in the climate must happen together.
The government’s investment will protect homes, food production and the natural environment while giving emergency services the resources they need to respond.
Eagle’s message is clear: climate denial will not keep families safe, protect farmers or prevent homes from being destroyed.
Britain’s climate is changing, and Labour is determined to meet that reality with honesty, investment and practical action.
The story is based on Angela Eagle’s article in The Guardian and the government’s £65 million drought-support package.
