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Every supermarket, high street store and online retailer has been banned from selling disposable barbecues by Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

The government’s Office for Product and Safety Standards (OPSS) has today announced a temporary law change following an emergency Cobra meeting convened by the new PM in the wake of the ongoing drought and a spate of fires and wildfires across the UK.

The single-use grills “have been the cause of a number of serious wildfires across the country over the summer months”, advice published online by the Government said.

It added: “Disposable barbecues cannot be considered a safe product in the context of the ongoing weather and environmental conditions and must not be made available for sale either in store or online at the current time.”

Prime Minister Andy Burnham had suggested earlier in the week that such a measure could be introduced.

It means retailers like Aldi, Amazon, Morrisons, Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury’s will not be allowed to sell the disposable barbecues to the public, by law. Aldi, however, has voluntarily declined to sell disposable barbecues since 2022.

Any retailer found continuing to sell them could face ‘criminal sanctions’, the government said. Although the rule change is described as temporary, there is not yet any given date for which the new rules will end.

The OPSS said in the announcement: “These statutory guidelines are made by the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.

“They must be taken into account by retailers and distributors of disposable barbecues in ensuring they do not supply products that they know or ought to know to be dangerous, in line with their legal requirements under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPSR) as it applies in Great Britain (GB).

“The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), as the UK’s national product regulator, and Local Authority Trading Standards, have powers to enforce the GPSR and there are sanctions, including criminal sanctions, for those that do not comply with the requirements.

“Disposable barbecues have been the cause of a number of serious wildfires across the country over the summer months.

“During the current drought and heatwave conditions, the government considers that the supply and subsequent foreseeable use of disposable barbecues poses a significant risk to the public, and the environment, and therefore cannot be considered a safe product.

“They should not be made available for supply either in store or online at the current time. These guidelines will be kept under review, and will be withdrawn in consultation with relevant departments and agencies, as weather conditions change sufficiently to significantly reduce the risks.”