Cairngorms wildfire ‘will have inevitable economic impact’

Highland Council said it was working with the Scottish government, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and other organisations to assess the economic impact.

Businesses in the affected area of the Cairngorms National Park have been sent a survey asking what short and longer-term support they might need.

The Scottish Greens have called for an emergency fund to be set up to support communities responding to wildfires and provide for businesses suffering cancellations and closures.

MSP Ariane Burgess said: “Wildfires of this scale are not going away.

“Our changing climate is making extreme conditions more frequent, and government support must become planned, permanent and ready to deploy, not improvised after the flames have already spread.”

Responding to the comments, Justice Secretary Neil Gray said, whose government role covers the fire service, said: “The Scottish government is engaging with businesses in the local area to gather information on impacts as we move into the recovery phase to assess what immediate medium and long-term support is needed.”