Britons are set to be urged to keep basic supplies of food and water at home as the Government steps up preparations for major national emergencies.
A new public resilience campaign is expected to encourage households to keep items such as bottled water and long-life or tinned food so they can cope temporarily if essential services are disrupted.
The plans form part of wider work across Government on national resilience, covering risks including extreme weather, cyber attacks and threats from hostile states.
Households to be encouraged to prepare for disruption
The Financial Times reported that ministers are developing a public information campaign aimed at making households more resilient during serious emergencies.
The intention is not to warn that a particular attack or disaster is imminent, but to encourage people to take practical steps that could allow them to manage for a period without immediate Government assistance.
That would, ministers argue, allow emergency resources to be concentrated on people who are most vulnerable or unable to prepare for themselves.
The Guardian separately reported that the campaign will advise people to keep supplies including tinned food and bottled water.
Government steps up national resilience planning
The campaign sits alongside a broader programme of work intended to improve Britain's preparedness for major disruption.
The Financial Times reported that the Government is stepping up work on a so-called “home defence” plan and reviewing central contingency arrangements for a serious national-security emergency.
The Cabinet Office has already confirmed that a national public awareness campaign will be launched to help people prepare for emergencies such as extreme weather and cyber attacks.
The Government's 2026 Resilience Action Plan also commits ministers to new household preparedness advice supported by a multi-year public campaign.
National Risk Register highlights range of threats
The Government's National Risk Register sets out a wide range of threats that could cause major disruption across the United Kingdom.
These include cyber attacks, extreme weather, infrastructure failures, public-health emergencies and hostile-state activity.
Democratic interference and cyber attacks were among the risks highlighted when the 2026 register was published in July.
The Government says household preparedness forms part of a wider “whole of society” approach in which individuals, businesses, local authorities and national institutions all have a role in strengthening resilience.
Security concerns add urgency
The renewed focus on resilience comes amid heightened concern about cyber threats to British infrastructure and the wider security consequences of international tensions.
Recent reports have linked Iranian actors to a cyber attack that disrupted a small UK electricity generator, although the Government said the incident did not threaten the wider electricity system.
Russia's continuing war in Ukraine has also intensified discussion across Europe about civil preparedness and the resilience of critical infrastructure.
However, the Government has not said that Britain faces an imminent nationwide blackout or military attack, and the household campaign is intended to cover a broad range of possible emergencies.
Preparedness advice is not entirely new
Britain already has public guidance encouraging households to think about how they would cope during an emergency.
The Government's Prepare website advises people to consider supplies and practical arrangements that could help during disruption.
The new campaign represents an attempt to make that message more prominent and to place household resilience within a wider national-security and emergency-planning strategy.
Sources
- Financial Times: UK households to be urged to store water and tinned food for emergencies
- The Guardian: UK to warn citizens to stock up on food amid national resilience push
- Cabinet Office: National Risk Register and public awareness campaign
- UK Government: Resilience Action Plan 2026 implementation report