Conservative MSP Finlay Carson has accused the Scottish Government of failing to act on repeated warnings about the growing risk of wildfires in the Highlands before recent blazes broke out. He argues that officials and agencies had been alerted to the danger, including rising fire risk linked to drought conditions and land management practices, but that adequate prevention and resourcing measures were not put in place in time.

Carson's article contends that fire services and rural communities were left exposed as a result of this inaction, and calls for the SNP administration to be held accountable for the shortfall in preparedness. He points to broader concerns about resourcing for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and land management policy in the Highlands, framing the wildfires as a foreseeable disaster rather than an unavoidable one.