UK told to urgently 'prepare for food shortages and disruption' amid fears of 'emergency' scenarios

Brits have been told to urgently 'prepare' for potential food shortages and widespread disruption in a new alert by the Government.

Households in the UK are being told to take a number of measures in order to 'stay prepared' in the event that services become disrupted suddenly.

The new advice, published on Thursday (22 October) warns of events like severe weather or direct attacks on the country, which can impact services like power, water and the internet.

The fresh alert is the first stage of a three-year campaign to encourage households to be better prepared in line with other countries in Europe.

It asks people to sign up to the Priority Services Register, which helps gas, water, and electricity companies identify customers that may need extra support in an emergency.

The warning also urges people to keep a supply of non-perishable food and bottled water at home in the event of increasingly likely weather disasters or cyberattacks from the likes of Russia.

There is an increasing threat from Russia (Kristina Solovyova / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

El Niño weather warning sparks production fears

With brutal storms last winter and one of the driest summers on record, which caused rampant wildfires across the UK, the Government also said 'severe weather events' can cause 'disruption to our everyday lives' and 'impact the services we rely on'.

It comes after scientists earlier this week warned that the El Niño weather event could result in dramatic rise in the ocean, leading to widespread flooding.

UK has been told to stock up (Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

While it is a naturally occurring phenomenon, some scientists have also warned that increases in sea temperatures from climate change will exacerbate the impact.

The precise impact of El Niño varies depending on location, with some places experiencing drought while others might experience floods, sparking fears of production issues for certain foods.

The UK'S ‘Be Ready’ campaign will build gradually over time and is part of a campaign used in France, Ireland and The Netherlands.

Dan Jarvis MP, Security Minister, explained: "Those who can follow this advice should follow this advice.

"By taking simple steps to be ready for everyday emergencies like severe storms, people can reduce pressure on emergency services, helping them prioritise people who need more support in an emergency.

"This is just the sort of community-focused campaign the UK needs to improve our resilience as a nation. It will bring us into line with European counterparts, where advice like this is a normal part of everyday life."

Brits have also been told to stock up on water (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Guidance 'must be taken seriously'

The Government said many of the steps are low cost, but that it will also allow emergency services to prioritise those most in-need if an emergency were to happen.

The public were also told to prepare for widespread disruption from cyberattacks by the defence secretary Wes Streeting.

The MP said guidance must be taken seriously, particularly amid further concerns over the risk of conflict with Russia.

Wes Streeting (Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

“It’s really important we ask households and businesses, are they prepared?” Streeting said. “Are they ready? Do they know how they would respond in the event of every day challenges that might manifest themselves?

“Are they prepared for the eventuality that there may be disruption to essential supply chains caused by hostile state actors or terrorists?” he asked. “How would we cope if the payment systems of the supermarkets went down?

“Those are the sorts of everyday challenges and threats we could well face, and it is right we ask the country to be ready for those things and ask everybody to do their bit.”

Laura Scott, British Red Cross Director for UK Resilience meanwhile added: "We can’t control when emergencies happen, but we can all take some simple steps to be prepared, so that when they do, we are ready to help our friends, families and neighbours.

"We know from our work across the UK that local people know their communities best and want to play a part when a crisis happens.

"Having clear and trusted advice for people, especially those who may be more at-risk, could help reduce the impact of crises and even save lives."