Key facts
- New AI unit to be housed in the National Situation Centre.
- Businesses like Google, Airbus, and VodafoneThree are expected to attend the summit.
- More than half of surveyed fire services lacked wildfire-specific PPE.
- The new grant scheme for farmers will run from April 2027 to April 2029.
The UK government is establishing an AI-powered unit to detect and combat wildfires, following a summer of record-breaking heat and devastating blazes. Prime Minister Andy Burnham will announce the initiative on Friday at the government's first wildfire resilience summit. The new unit will be part of the National Situation Centre, aiming to enable faster fire spotting and response. Businesses such as Google, Airbus, and VodafoneThree are expected to participate in discussions on satellite monitoring and early warning systems. The government is also allocating £45 million for fire crews to acquire wildfire-specific personal protective equipment (PPE) and will make military aircraft available for difficult-to-reach areas. Additionally, £25 million will be dedicated to restoring peatlands to improve natural firebreaks, with funding also provided to farmers to enhance landscape resilience.