Britons will be urged by the Government to stock up on tinned food and bottled water in case of emergencies.
A new public information drive will encourage households to prepare for severe disruption from events such as extreme weather, cyber attacks or hostile state action.
The national resilience campaign will highlight simple steps people can take to keep themselves and their families safe in a crisis where power or water supplies are taken out or shops are forced to close.
A Government official 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.’
But the source insisted: ‘It will be common sense, not scaremongering.’
Ministers are also stepping up work on national security by updating the so-called ‘war book’ that set outs how departments respond to major threats.
The biggest home defence exercise in decades will take place next year ‘to ensure that should the worst ever happen, we will always be ready’, MPs were told last month.
It comes after Andy Burnham ordered loud emergency alerts to be sent to all mobile phones in England and Wales earlier this month, warning of the danger posed by wildfires.
The Government sent a ‘severe alert’ to all mobile phones about the risk of wildfires
Downing Street insisted the move was ‘entirely appropriate’ but many said the system should be reserved for more urgent threats to life such as terror attacks.
It emerged at the weekend that hackers linked to Iran managed to shut down a power plant in the UK last month.
A spokesman for 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.’
