Neil Gray blunders as Highlands burn: SNP MSP accused of 'playing games' after trying to blame Met Office for shambolic wildfire response

Published: 19:43, 26 July 2026 | Updated: 19:43, 26 July 2026 Bungling minister Neil Gray has been accused of ‘playing games’ after trying to blame the Met Office for the Scottish Government’s shambolic response to the Cairngorms wildfire. The Justice Secretary – who is in charge of emergency planning – claimed last week the blaze had been contained. But on Friday night, as the flames raged on, a major incident was finally declared when the wind swung round and picked up speed, putting the village of Nethy Bridge at risk. The farce deepened on Sunday as Mr Gray insisted in a bizarre BBC interview that the government had had no warning of the ‘sudden’ and ‘drastic’ change in conditions, adding: ‘We have to take decisions on the basis of the evidence that’s before us... in terms of weather forecasting.’ But in fact, the Met Office gave plenty of notice. On Thursday, meteorologist Clare Nasir – pointing to the Highlands on a map – warned: ‘Notice then the winds pick up some strength, coming in from the south-west... into the early hours of Saturday morning’. Speaking on Radio Scotland’s Sunday Show, Mr Gray also admitted he had asked the UK Government to send helicopters he already knew they didn’t have, leading critics to accuse the SNP of using the wildfire to stoke cross-border grievances. Scottish Conservative MSP for the Highlands and Islands, Tim Eagle said: ‘Neil Gray has spectacularly exposed the SNP’s chaotic handling of this emergency. Justice Secretary Neil Gray claimed last week the blaze had been contained The blaze broke out on July 15 and spread quickly   ‘While ministers were playing games, local people were facing evacuation, firefighters were risking their lives and communities were demanding action.’ Firefighters are still trying to contain the wildfire which began 12 days ago – though a further change in the winds means Nethy Bridge is no longer in danger. However, fury over the Scottish Government’s handling of the crisis is far from abating. Sandy McCook, chairman of Nethy Bridge Community Council, accused ministers of being woefully ill-prepared and branded Mr Gray’s words ‘patent nonsense’.  He said: ‘Last week he was saying, “we’ve got all the resources we need”. Twelve days later, we’re still fighting it. His head has been in the sand. ‘If the fire had been burning down Edinburgh Castle, there’d have been far more of a response.’ The blaze broke out on July 15 and spread quickly, but a day later Mr Gray insisted it had been ‘contained’ and that the fire service had ‘adequate resources’. But as it continued to claim ground, residents and campers were evacuated. Ministers resisted calls to declare a major incident, however, Police Scotland made that decision on Friday, when the winds switched to brisk south-westerly. Villagers in Nethy Bridge were evacuated amid fears the blaze could reach the small Inverness-shire community. Grilled on the BBC about why he had said the wildfire was ‘contained’ when a major incident then had to be declared, Mr Gray took exception to the suggestion he had got it wrong. Instead, he pointed the finger at weather forecasters – and also mistakenly claimed the wind had changed to northerly. He said: ‘The dynamic element and the unpredictable element of the weather completely changed the picture on Friday night, where the wind changed suddenly and drastically to the north. We have to take decisions on the basis of the evidence that’s before us, both in terms of weather forecasting, on the spread of the fire, on the resources that are available.’ But last night the Met Office refuted his claim. A spokesman said: ‘We have been working closely with authorities in Scotland involved in the local response to the wildfire to provide weather forecast information to aid their decision-making.’ On Sunday the battle continued, with diggers building firebreaks to reduce the risk of the blaze spreading north towards residential areas. Firefighters are still trying to contain the wildfire which began 12 days ago The organisers of Abernethy Highland Games also announced next month’s event was cancelled because of the ongoing situation. Deputy Assistant Chief Officer Kenny Barbour said of the wildfire: ‘This remains a dynamic and changing incident and we expect to be in attendance with significant resources into next week.’ In his BBC interview, Mr Gray was asked why ministers had requested helicopters from the UK Government that they knew the military didn’t have. He said: ‘We wanted just to test for certain what we were getting [told] informally.’ Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said Chinook helicopters – for logistics rather than firefighting – and troops are available if requested. But Mr Swinney rejected the offer. Following a further meeting of ministers’ Resilience Room to discuss the crisis, he said: ‘The offer is welcome but SFRS has confirmed they have the other resources they need.’