Scotland’s recent wildfires have provided a stark reminder that the threat facing our countryside is changing. The devastating fires of 2025, followed by the major wildfire in the Cairngorms in July this year, demonstrate that Scotland needs a long-term approach to wildfire prevention — not simply a stronger response once flames are already spreading.
The Scottish government’s own figures show the scale of the challenge. Its Wildfires Strategic Action Plan states that 2025 was Scotland’s “most severe wildfire season on record”, with 241 recorded wildfire incidents, including 109 in April alone. The fires around Carrbridge and Dava Moor burned almost 10,000 hectares.
This summer, the Cairngorms again demonstrated how quickly circumstances can deteriorate. In July, changing winds caused the fire to spread towards Nethy Bridge, resulting in a precautionary evacuation and the declaration of a major incident. First Minister John Swinney described it as “a very serious situation” and thanked the emergency services working to contain it. However, he initially failed to recognise the efforts of land managers and local machinery operators.
The Scottish Countryside Alliance has every reason to commend the firefighters, police officers, local authorities, land managers and rural communities who have responded to these incidents. Their work has been exceptional. The response to the Cairngorms fire included more than 100 firefighters, specialist wildfire units, high-volume pumps and helicopter water-bombing operations.
But we must also ask the question: are we doing enough before the fire starts?
The Scottish government's Strategic Action Plan explicitly states that “preventing wildfires is the most effective and least costly way” of protecting communities, businesses, nature and infrastructure. It identifies human activity as responsible for the majority of wildfire ignitions, including unattended campfires, equipment sparks, uncontrolled burning and debris burning. That being said, they seem to put little credence on allowing land managers to muirburn without a licensing system that restricts actions that may prevent and most certainly would help contain the spread of a fire.
The countryside cannot simply be treated as somewhere for emergency services to defend once a wildfire is established. Prevention has to begin with the way land is managed throughout the year. Firebreaks, vegetation management and carefully regulated muirburn can all have an important role in reducing fuel loads and slowing the spread of fire.
Indeed, the Scottish government has acknowledged this. In evidence published following the 2025 wildfire season, ministers recognised “the positive benefits which can come from controlled burning to create fire breaks” and acknowledged “the critical role of land managers and their knowledge of landscapes.”
That acknowledgement matters. Those who live and work on the land often have an intimate understanding of how vegetation, weather, terrain and access interact. Their expertise should be incorporated into wildfire policy rather than treated as an afterthought.
We also welcome measures designed to reduce accidental ignitions. New fire-prevention byelaws came into force in the Cairngorms National Park in April 2026, restricting outdoor fires and barbecues in public places between April and September, subject to specified exceptions.
Public education must accompany such measures. During periods of extreme wildfire danger, people need clear, consistent and highly visible advice about campfires, barbecues, cigarettes and other sources of ignition. In April 2025, when the wildfire danger reached “very high” to “extreme” levels, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service warned the public to avoid anything involving a naked flame. However, prevention cannot stop at public messaging.
We need better early-warning systems, stronger local preparedness and greater investment in the practical resources available to rural communities. The government’s own action plan proposes improved wildfire danger assessments, enhanced early-warning systems, additional specialist equipment for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, stronger multi-agency training and a review of helicopter access and aerial support.
These commitments should be delivered as a matter of urgency and this experience should prompt a serious discussion about Scotland’s long-term aerial firefighting capacity. We cannot wait until the next major incident to discover gaps in capability and - as Fergus Ewing MSP recently stated - next time, there may be loss of life.
Most importantly, we must recognise that wildfire prevention is a shared responsibility. Government has a responsibility to provide the legislation, funding, coordination and emergency capability. Land managers have a responsibility to manage risks on their land. Visitors have a responsibility to follow countryside access guidance and avoid activities that could start fires. Local communities must be supported to develop their own resilience.
The Scottish government itself concludes that wildfires are “a growing, climate-driven threat” requiring “shared responsibility and strong, coordinated action”. We agree.
The firefighters and volunteers who tackle Scotland’s wildfires deserve our gratitude. But the ultimate measure of success should not simply be how effectively we extinguish the next major blaze. It should be how many fires we prevent from becoming major incidents in the first place.
Scotland’s rural communities, wildlife, farmland, forests and peatlands cannot afford a cycle of increasingly destructive fires followed by emergency responses. We need a countryside policy that values prevention, recognises the expertise of those who manage the land, invests in practical fire mitigation and prepares for a future in which extreme wildfire conditions may become increasingly common.
The lesson from recent years is clear: we must ask the Scottish government to move from reacting to wildfires towards actively preventing them and surely the introduction of a restrictive licensing system should be reconsidered at this critical time.