For emergencies, Burnham suggests stocking up on tinned food and bottled water for three days

Burnham backs the basics

Burnham told BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Matt Chorley that he would recommend people keep the basic supplies. He added that he could not go long without Twiglets and said he had a stockpile of coffee.

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner joked at Labour’s conference last month that her emergency box would contain Sauvignon Blanc. Asked about the idea, Burnham said wine might be more useful after the hard work of dealing with a crisis.

Risks to food supplies

The chief executive of the Cold Chain Federation, which represents businesses transporting temperature-controlled food, told the BBC that Russian cyber-hackers were targeting the UK. He said they knew there were vulnerable points in the food supply system.

He also pointed to weather events and said storms were affecting the UK, adding that people without power in Cornwall were in his thoughts. Burnham noted that Ireland, France and the Netherlands had offered similar preparedness guidance for quite a long time.

Badenoch raises defence concerns

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said on the same programme that she was stocked up for a week at any time. She said families could prepare, but questioned the state of the country’s defence against cyber-attacks and hybrid warfare. Badenoch said money to look after the country had not been forthcoming.