Marks & Spencer has put the welfare of shoppers first, halting the sale of disposable barbecues throughout the UK. M&S stated it needed “to assist shield open areas and scale back the danger of fires”.
London Fireplace Brigade, which has been calling for a ban on the sale of disposable barbecues, stated the transfer was “excellent news”.
It comes after the UK skilled its hottest day ever, with 40C exceeded for the primary time.
Dozens of places noticed temperatures above the earlier report of 38.7C, and 15 fireplace companies declared main incidents due to a surge in blazes. An M&S spokesperson stated that the transfer got here into impact earlier this week.
The grocery store stated: “We’d already stopped promoting disposable barbecues close to nationwide parks and in London however given the unusually sizzling and dry situations, we’ve taken the precautionary step of eradicating them from sale throughout the UK.”
The London Fireplace Brigade had already warned individuals in opposition to utilizing barbecues in open areas, grassland or balconies, notably after the latest heatwave.
Final week, its commissioner Andy Roe known as for disposable barbecues to be taken off the cabinets throughout Britain.
It got here after the London Fireplace Brigade skilled its busiest day since World Battle Two, coping with a number of blazes within the record-breaking temperatures.
Welcoming the choice by M&S, London Fireplace Brigade stated: “We wish to work with retailers to cease the sale of disposable barbecues and scale back the danger of harmful grass fires.”
Retail analyst Jonathan de Mello stated he anticipated related bulletins to observe from different supermarkets.
“This transfer by M&S will put strain on their retail friends to observe swimsuit,” he stated.
“With a number of grass fires attributable to these barbecues given the unprecedented sizzling climate we have now seen up to now few weeks, M&S have rightly determined to place public security first,” he added.
“M&S are sometimes seen as a bellwether for UK retailers, and hopefully different retailers will observe their lead.”
