M&S stops selling disposable barbecues across UK

Marks & Spencer has stopped selling disposable barbecues in its stores across the UK.

Announcing the move, the supermarket said it wanted "to help protect open spaces and reduce the risk of fires".

London Fire Brigade, which has been calling for a ban on the sale of disposable barbecues, welcomed the move, saying it was "good news".

It comes after the UK experienced its hottest day ever on record, with 40C exceeded for the first time.

Dozens of locations saw temperatures above the previous UK record of 38.7C and 15 fire services declared major incidents because of a surge in blazes.

M&S said the move, which came into effect this week, was due to "the unusually hot and dry conditions".

In a statement, the supermarket said: "At M&S we want to help protect open spaces and reduce the risk of fires.

"We'd already stopped selling disposable barbecues near national parks and in London but given the unusually hot and dry conditions, we've taken the precautionary step of removing them from sale across the UK."

London Fire Brigade had already warned people against using barbecues in open spaces, grassland or balconies, particularly after the recent heatwave.

Last week, its commissioner Andy Roe called for disposable barbecues to be taken off the shelves across Britain.

Welcoming the decision by M&S, London Fire Brigade said: "We want to work with retailers to stop the sale of disposable barbecues and reduce the risk of dangerous grass fires."

The UK saw record high temperatures on 19 July, with 40C exceeded for the first time.

The two days of extreme temperatures prompted the Met Office to issue a red extreme heat warning for the first time.