Leading climate scientists who helped Andy Burnham design Greater Manchester's carbon neutral by 2038 plan have written to him urging him, as prime minister, to reject new North Sea oil and gas drilling. The intervention comes amid weekend reports suggesting his government could approve development at the Jackdaw and Rosebank oilfields, a move the academics warn would signal to the world that the UK is abandoning its climate commitments and would sharply contradict the principles Burnham championed while mayor.

The letter, from Professor Kevin Anderson and colleagues at the University of Manchester's Tyndall Centre, notes that Labour's manifesto ruled out new oil and gas licences, though Jackdaw and Rosebank were already in the approval system before the last election after being cleared under the Conservatives and then halted by legal action requiring fuller climate impact assessment. A consultation on Jackdaw closes on 8 August. The scientists, who produced the carbon budget analysis behind Burnham's Manchester pledge, argue emissions must fall 8% annually to keep within the Paris Agreement's 2C limit, and point to this summer's wildfires and heatwaves, including UK moorland fires, as evidence the crisis is intensifying rather than easing.