The UK government wants families to stock up on food. Here’s what to buy

UK households are being urged to stock up on essential items in case of emergencies, according to reports.

A new public information drive is set to encourage people to prepare for extreme weather , cyber attacks and hostile state action .

The national resilience campaign aims to highlight the steps people can take to stay safe in a crisis that may cause power or water supplies to stop or where shops are forced to close.

The government aims to help people cope in a national disaster, in order to free resources for most vulnerable.

Tinned food and bottled water are some of the essential items the government could ask people to stock up on.

Environment Secretary Angela Eagle stressed the importance of keeping supplies at home , after forecasters predicted the biggest El Nino in 1,000 years.

Speaking about the wetter winters and drier summers the El Nino will bring, Ms Eagle told the Guardian : “If you’ve got a store of a bit of food that can keep you going for a while before the emergency services can get to you, you’re going to be a lot better off than if you haven’t. So some of it is that kind of preparation for just being a bit more resilient.”

A source previously told The Financial Times : “There will be practical advice on things you can do to improve domestic resilience, like having some bottled water and tinned food. It will be common sense, not scaremongering.”

Andy Burnham ’s government is focusing on national resilience in the wake of threats from Russia.

The government is also concerned following the record-breaking heatwaves the UK has experienced this summer, plunging the country into drought and causing numerous wildfires.

According to the FT , the government is accelerating work on its “ war book” – a manual for the defence of the nation against external threats – as well as a social media campaign with advice to help people to deal with the impacts of extreme weather .

It also updated its national risk register last month, with the risk of interference in the UK’s democratic process added to it.

The national risk register is the government’s assessment of the most significant risks facing the UK.

It is a planning tool designed to help professionals prepare for risks and is not intended to be a prediction of future events.