Question
I warmly welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement. Will he join me in praising Ben Brook, the chief fire officer in Warwickshire, and his firefighting and administrative teams for their brave efforts this summer? In July, there were 771 incidents, which is the highest number on record—double the rate in July 2021. Can my right hon. Friend confirm that the Government will do all they can to provide the fire service in Warwickshire with the resources it needs, and will offer help with reaching out to the public about the parts of his statement to do with their involvement in resilience?33% vibes
Answer
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question, and I absolutely join him in praising Ben Brook and his team in Warwickshire; they did incredibly important and difficult work over the summer. My hon. Friend may have seen that last week the Prime Minister hosted our inaugural wildfire summit, at which he announced that military planes and helicopters will take to the skies to fight wildfires for the first time, as we prepare for future extreme weather driven by climate change. In his announcement, the Prime Minister paid tribute to those who put on a uniform and serve in our fire and rescue services for the incredibly important work that they do, including, clearly, in my hon. Friend’s constituency.38% vibes
Verdict: AMBER (40/100)
The minister directly praised Ben Brook and the Warwickshire team for their work over the summer, which fully answers that part of the question. On whether the Government will do all it can for Warwickshire's fire service resources, the reply only points to national measures such as military aircraft and helicopters for wildfires, without committing to meet Warwickshire's specific needs. The question about involving the public in resilience and outreach is not answered at all. The reply is therefore partly answered and largely non-committal, and the asker would likely need to follow up on the resources and public-involvement points.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Will the Minister join in praising Ben Brook, the chief fire officer in Warwickshire, and his firefighting and administrative teams for their efforts this summer? | Addressed | Direct | The minister explicitly joins in praising Ben Brook and the Warwickshire team by name and credits them with important, difficult work over the summer, which is exactly what was asked. |
| Will the Government confirm that it will do all it can to provide the Warwickshire fire service with the resources it needs? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply never confirms that the Government will do all it can for Warwickshire's fire service resources; the closest content is a national commitment to deploy military planes and helicopters against wildfires, which is a concrete resource measure but is not tied to Warwickshire or framed as a pledge to meet its needs. |
| Will the Government offer help with reaching out to the public about the parts of the statement concerning the public's involvement in resilience? | Not Addressed | Generic | Nothing in the reply addresses public involvement in resilience or offers any help with public outreach; the statements only cover the wildfire summit, military aircraft, and tributes to firefighters. |