Climate change is not in the distant future, it is here with us today. Around the world we are seeing extreme weather events happening more often. On our own shores, Storm Babet had a devastating impact on local communities. We know we need to take urgent action to stop runaway global overheating, but we also need to act now to adapt to the climate change that is already happening.

For Londoners like me, this was made clear last year when record high temperatures threatened lives and livelihoods in our city. More than 2,000 people died because of extreme heat between 2018 and 2022. Heat-related fires spread across the city – from Harrow to Havering – leading to London Fire Brigade’s busiest day since the Second World War.