We the undersigned  are all organisations in Manchester working to improve the city, striving to create better opportunities for the city’s citizens. Some of us work on energy, others on food, others in the arts.

We are all desperately concerned about climate change and the impacts it will have – is already having – on everyone in the city, especially the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.

We applaud the Council’s decision to overhaul the existing scrutiny arrangements so that the climate emergency gets more attention. This is one way – by no means the only one – that the thorny issues of how we reduce emissions radically and adapt to changes that are now inevitable can be addressed.

We urge those currently formulating the scrutiny proposals to be bold, ambitious and far-reaching, as befits the history of Manchester, which has so often been a pioneer.

On Wednesday 31st March, councillors will debate and hopefully vote for the strongest possible set of proposals.

Regardless of the outcome, which we will be watching intently, we commit ourselves to working with other organisations to improve our response to climate change over the coming months, years and decades.