Why have we been told to 'stockpile' and what for?

Follow the news! War in the middle east and ukraine, russia and USA, possibility of severe winter on the way, AI and hacking of systems and internet……………………

I can't see where the budget comes into it. Is this not old news? From August ?

What food might Brits need to stock up on and what kind of situations are Brits preparing for? | LBC

From that-

"The Cabinet Office said: “Safeguarding national security is the first priority of any government.
“We’re committed to raising awareness of simple steps households can take to make themselves more resilient, as well as driving forward the home defence programme to build our country’s preparedness for various threats.”"

And given the news just now is about an issue with the internet, It looks like the chances of a net failure is very real. And that would cause major problems with the supply chain.

The advise to build your own stocks isn’t new at all - how have you missed it ?

straight war, cyber war, climate change

Have a read of these threads and you will be bang up to date @merryredfly .

AIBU to think my friend is overdoing emergency stockpiling? | Mumsnet

Crisis What Crisis? Is my friend over doing the stockpiling and am I too? Continuation thread (2) | Mumsnet

Crisis What Crisis? The One You Start To Wish You'd Stockpiled Like Your Crazy Friend? Continuation thread (3) | Mumsnet

All the scaremongering is getting on my (candle) wick!

(Candles... coz they're telling us to stock up with them in case of power cuts....Geddit?)

I'll get me coat.

.

Use your imagination. We are entering the storm season, how would you manage with no central heating/hot water, kettle, microwave, cooker (possibly), TV, internet,mobile phone, land-line, lighting for 3 days during a power cut?

How would you manage without running water for the same 3 days? (most water is delivered via pumps). No shops would be open due to lack of power, likewise GP surgeries etc etc.

Three days won't touch the sides if there's significant foreign interference but if storms, wildfires or cyber affect water supply it might make a difference.

I heard it was basically, have enough to get you through 3 days, food, water, meds. I meal plan so I generally have that between my normal fridge/freezer and a large bottle of water. Is there more?

Weather, war… but most likely Putin et al fucking around with our electricity / gas / water / internet. Or hacking into supply chains meaning shops can’t get stock or bringing down the banking system.

My gut feeling there are credible threats which might plunge us into some sort of short term crisis so while I’m not one to panic I’ve got a hinky feeling they’re trying to tell us something.

We’ve bought a few bags of pasta, rice, tinned tomatoes and tuna, and about 20 litres of water. And dry shampoo and wet wipes. And biscuits.

Google or news outlets have all the context

Supply chain issues really. Basically try not to run down essentials too much if you can avoid it. If you're in the nice position of being able to might also be worth upping food bank donations.

Yes it's not just food water and meds it's also what if there's no power? So lighting, torches etc - communication, power banks, wind up radio so you can get any official communications - cooking, have a camping stove at the least - no banks etc, have some cash in the house - no heat, foil blankets, hot water bottles.
Etc. It's all on the gov.uk website and much expanded on in the threads I've linked to above.

Im pretty sure we're told only 5% ( or even less) about what's going on .
I will always remember my boss who told me and my colleague to go home earlier and get nappies, formula and everything I need for my child 3 days before first lockdown (I was literally 2 weeks back from Maternity leave). We thought she was overthinking,etc. The next morning we received an email from her that all bookings are closed and we preparing to lock the hotel . We spent 2 days preparing for lockdown and the whole country found out on day number 3, when our hotel was cleaned, prepared and locked already...

I think we're quite behind other parts of Europe in terms of citizens getting good advice on how to be resilient and prepared in case of an emergency - so, personally, I don't think there's anything sinister in it. I think it's good, sensible advice. It's definitely made me more aware about the need to have - for example - torches and batteries available.

Yep.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protect_and_Survive

FFS - emergency preparedness is standard in most countries. With the state of the world today, it’s time we catch up.

Both. We're due a very strong El Nino, with likely severe storms this winter. Power cuts, flooding and blocked roads are likely (see Devon & Cornwall today). Supermarkets may not be able to restock shelves in time so having a couple of days food in tins, and the freezer is common sense. UHT milk, an extra bag of pasta or rice.

We're under cyber attack pretty constantly from Russia, Iran and criminal gangs. They try daily to take down our financial systems. If they succeed, how will you buy food if your chip & pin or your phone don't work? So keep enough cash in the house for a week's groceries. Remember M&S being hacked, their order processing was down for three months. Imagine Tesco & Sainsbury being hit at the same time. That would cause shortages.

There is also a war in the middle east disrupting the supply of oil. If we have a cold winter in Europe, there may not be enough easily accessible fuel. Competition for heating gas would rise. The UK has very little storage. How will you keep warm if your heating doesn't work? Think about warm sweaters, battery lighting, how to keep children warm, fed & entertained.

I live rurally and I have the following:
2 litres UHT milk
tins of fish, meat, beans, tomatoes, fruit
25 ltres drinking water
An extra bag each of pasta, rice, couscous, coffee
basic toiletries, loo roll
wood & matches for my log burner
In the freezer, there's spag bol, chilli, sausages, chicken, veg.
I also have three water butts providing water to flush the loos.

A few years ago our power was down for 4 days. My elderly neighbours came to stay because they had no heat or light & no way to heat food.

It's about your family being able to cope for a few days if systems fail. That's all.

There! Easy to gind in all news outlets!

I'm old enough to remember regular power cuts in the 70's/80's. My parents always had a big stock of candles, matches and torches and I recall them being used on several occasions too. They still have the same cupboard full of candles.

I think we've become so reliant on being able to flip a switch and our lights come on or running a tap for fresh water that we forget life wasn't always like that for many and not that too long ago either.

We are semi rural so always have plenty of logs for the log burner, candles, torches and a generator with enough diesel to run it if needed. They have all come in handy when we've had past power cuts, long enough to cause an issue.

I also have ADHD and by default I over shop so always have extra pasta and tinned goods. Sometimes being ND is a positive thing!

Through the 70s we had frequent power outages - paraffin heaters stink and candles are a parents nightmare

through the war - people would queue for hours for an egg

Peter porter your attention please ….

Most developed countries have asked this of their citizens for decades, is really not big news. This should be standard ALL the time not just during times like these. People seem to have forgotten Covid and the shortages, and the shortages are NOT caused by stockpiling food. They are caused by panic buyers running out last minute. That’s why we are being told to be prepared ( but I always have been) .

I’ve got camping equipment, stove and gas, tea lights and lanterns to reduce the fire risk, power banks, lots of tinned and ambient stored food, a full freezer, medication, a water but in the garden for flushing the loo and 5x5litres of water. Tons of pulses and grains for soups and a few kg of pasta and passata. Plenty of dried herbs. I’ve also got a bbq and charcoal to mix it up a bit. Enough dog and cat food to last 2-3 weeks. And I bit loo roll and toiletries in bulk so we are good to go

That's a good start, but how are you cooking them if the power's off and the water isn't running? You need that level of prep, too.

No not the eighties, way earlier. And it was simply to make people feel reassured. Propping up a door to make a shelter was not going to save anyone if there was a nuclear blast.