How can you influence your mayor on climate and nature?

The government’s devolution plans mean more powers and resources for regional mayors. Find out how groups can call for more ambition on climate and nature.

31 Jul 2025

Regional mayors are becoming increasingly important for delivering action to tackle climate change and nature loss. But while there’s been good progress in some areas, most mayors aren’t using their powers and resources as effectively as they should. This guide looks at the key policy areas that mayors are required to lead on and how campaigners can seek to influence various strategies.

If you’re new to influencing your mayor, the following video gives a useful introduction to the role and responsibilities of mayors and the resources they receive from central government. You can also read our article on mayors and climate action.

How mayoral powers are growing and changing

In December 2024, the UK government published its Devolution White Paper. This important document presented a Devolution Framework outlining the government’s intentions to introduce legislation giving increased resources and responsibilities to mayors, while also increasing the coverage of mayors across England.

In July 2025, the Devolution White Paper was followed by the publication of the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill. This bill will now make its way through parliament and will be subject to amendments before it’s passed into law. As indicated in the white paper, the bill sets out how local government will be reorganised, including the setting up of new strategic authorities. It also sets out new powers and duties for existing and new mayors and strategic authorities.

The Local Government Association has recently consulted on the proposal to introduce a statutory duty on councils to act on climate change. Friends of the Earth supports this and would call for this duty to be applied to mayoral strategic authorities. Depending on the detail, if this duty is adopted it will strengthen your hand when engaging with your mayor and combined authority. Unfortunately, a climate duty isn’t currently included in the bill, but it could be added via a successful amendment.

Note: within this guidance, we use the terms “mayors,” “mayoral combined authorities (MCAs),” “mayoral strategic authorities (MSAs)” and “established mayoral strategic authorities (EMSAs)”. MCAs are the public bodies currently led by mayors. These will become MSAs or EMSAs after the proposed bill is given Royal Assent, as it will establish 3 levels of strategic authorities:

Foundation (with no mayor and more limited powers)
Mayoral (with greater powers)
Established mayoral (with the broadest powers).

For details of where existing combined authorities are expected to fit within this framework, this government guide on English devolution is useful.

Which mayoral strategies can groups aim to influence?

This guidance sets out actions and issues around which local action groups and the wider environmental movement could campaign. It explains the opportunities to influence mayors that we’ve identified in the Devolution White Paper and the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill (and other sources).

Under the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, MSAs (except the Greater London Authority) will be required to produce Local Growth Plans (LGPs) setting out how they intend to achieve economic growth in their regions. But even before the bill becomes law, existing mayoral authorities are being encouraged to produce these plans.

Non-MSAs will be expected to develop economic strategies and, as they become MSAs, the requirement for LGPs will also apply to them.

The government’s guidance on LGPs states that all other strategies developed by mayors and MSAs must align with LGPs. This makes it hugely important that LGPs are as strong as possible on climate and nature. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill also requires other public organisations to have regard to the LGP.

LGPs will be linked to MSA’s Integrated Settlements. Integrated Settlements, which give MCAs greater flexibility over how they spend their funding from government, will be introduced to Greater London, the North East, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and Liverpool City Region from 2026-27. Greater Manchester and the West Midlands already receive Integrated Settlements. MSAs will have to demonstrate that Integrated Settlement spending contributes to the LGP’s objectives.

The government is also introducing a Local Growth Fund specifically aimed at MSAs in the North and the Midlands which have the greatest potential for “productivity catch-up”. The government will announce these regions in due course.

The Devolution White Paper links the LGP to other key strategies but without a requirement to align with legally binding climate targets. LGPs are a huge opportunity to make the case for a fair transition to a low-carbon economy with high-quality green jobs, but with no obligation to do this, there’s a risk that high-carbon development or false solutions (eg hydrogen for heating) will be included in LGPs.

Unfortunately, the government guidance for LGPs also doesn’t refer to the need to transition to a low-carbon economy, making it very important that local stakeholders make this case to mayors. As the Chancellor of the Exchequer said a few months ago: “There is no trade-off between economic growth and net zero. Quite the opposite. Net zero is the industrial opportunity of the 21st century, and Britain must lead the way.”

Friends of the Earth, as part of the Blueprint Coalition, called for the Devolution White Paper to ensure that climate targets are embedded in LGPs. We’ll now be calling for the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill to require alignment with climate targets as it passes through parliament.

MSAs will have joint responsibility for the development and delivery of Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs). These are currently being developed by employer representative bodies (mostly Chambers of Commerce), but the Devolution White Paper confirmed responsibility will be shared with MSAs.

The Adult Skills Fund will also be devolved to MSAs, with a requirement to develop local Get Britain Working Plans (GBWPs) linked to the Get Britain Working White Paper.

MSAs will also have the opportunity to co-ordinate the development of green skills and jobs. The potential to create thousands of green jobs in an area (eg where there’s strong potential for the offshore wind industry) may create opportunities to engage mayors who don’t align with you on the urgency to tackle climate change.

There’s strong potential to engage young people in influencing LSIPs and GBWPs to have a large emphasis on green skills.

There’s no requirement for MSAs to develop holistic Climate Action Plans (CAPs), despite recognition in the bill’s guidance that “Strategic Authorities play a vital role in preparing for the future and safeguarding biodiversity as well as advancing the green transition”. But it would be good practice for MSAs to produce CAPs that set out the ambition for their area and specific actions to play their part in meeting climate targets.

If your mayor is refusing to develop a robust CAP, campaigners should continue to push for these while shifting their focus to influencing the Local Growth Plan.

Climate Emergency UK’s Climate Scorecards project has analysed MCA CAPs alongside those of local councils.

MCAs that were operating in 2023 currently have a responsibility to lead the development of Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRSs) (see the list of responsible authorities). Those that don’t have this responsibility will be expected, over time, to assume the role. This will include responsibility for delivery, monitoring and subsequent review of the LNRS (expected every 3-10 years).

The government stated that all LNRSs should be in place by March 2025 and set out priorities for biodiversity across their area. But very few have been published, with the West of England being the first in November 2024.

LNRSs will have a key link to the local planning system and be a key instrument in how Biodiversity Net Gain is rolled out.

Mayoral leadership on transport covers a wide range of powers and responsibilities, including capital projects such as road building and new rail links, bus franchising, active travel and fare setting.

MCAs already have responsibility for developing and delivering Local Transport Plans (LTPs). But the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill sets out plans to extend the powers of MSAs by enabling them to take on the management of a Key Route Network of roads in their area, with local councils still holding responsibility for local roads. The bill will also give mayors a legal power to set traffic reduction targets on the Key Route Network. This could be aimed at addressing environmental concerns caused by excessive road traffic, reducing road congestion and promoting sustainable transport strategies.

LTPs will be required to be linked to Spatial Development Strategies (see the section on planning below).

Some mayors will be able to deliver capital projects using the Transport for City Regions settlements announced in the 2025 Comprehensive Spending Review, with specific reference to zero-emission buses, trams and local rail.

The Bus Services Bill will make bus franchising quicker and easier for MSAs to implement, with all local transport authorities able to decide whether to take buses into public ownership. This will include fare-setting powers.

There’ll also be a statutory role for mayors in “governing, managing, planning, and developing the rail network”. This will link to the development of Great British Railways, the new public ownership for the rail network.

Air quality and school streets will remain the responsibility of unitary authorities.

Spatial Development Strategies (SDSs) will be high-level plans setting out how things like housing numbers are distributed across the mayoral region. Currently, only Greater Manchester has developed a SDS. Other areas like the West Midlands have tried, but the requirement to have unanimous support from councils has prevented completion.

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill will require all areas to develop an SDS, with adoption now possible with only majority support from councils. The aim of this change is to accelerate house building. Mayors will also gain additional planning powers. It's therefore important that councils and mayors hear support in their areas for aligning SDSs and decisions on development with climate and nature goals.

Mayors with an SDS in place will be able to charge developers a Mayoral Community Infrastructure Levy, which could be used to fund infrastructure related to decarbonisation. Mayors will also have the power to develop Mayoral Development Corporations to deliver large development projects and will have the ability to prepare Mayoral Development Orders (MDOs) to grant permission for particular developments without a planning application. The bill takes away the requirement to get consent from local planning authorities before preparing an MDO.

The bill also provides mayors with call-in powers for strategically important planning applications (similar to the powers that the Mayor of London has had since 2008).

Friends of the Earth is campaigning with allies to ensure that planning is properly aligned with climate targets in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill currently progressing through parliament, and to ensure that nature protections aren’t weakened. Rights Community Action is also campaigning for communities to have a right to be heard in the SDS development process.

Mayors have a key role in supporting the delivery of Local Area Energy Plans (LAEPs), particularly by ensuring integration of these plans into their SDSs and collaboration with the National Energy System Operator as it develops Regional Energy Strategic Plans to accelerate decarbonisation.

Mayors will also lead on the development of Local Power Plans, a mechanism to attract local investment into low-carbon energy through local authorities and community energy groups.

Mayors have significant influence over the introduction of large-scale energy infrastructure. Examples include carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) clusters and the development of hydrogen energy.

From 2028, mayors in receipt of Integrated Settlements will have greater control over funds for retrofitting buildings. These funds (Warm Homes: Local Grant, Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund and Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme) will be devolved to EMSAs first.

Mayoral authorities are likely to play a significant role in delivering the UK government’s Warm Homes Plan.

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill will introduce a new legal requirement for almost all strategic authorities to have regard to improving the health of people and reducing health inequalities between people in their areas. This could be an opportunity to link health and wellbeing outcomes to climate and nature actions such as cleaner air, warmer homes and more access to green space.

According to the bill guidance, health inequalities are defined as inequalities of life expectancy or general state of health resulting from differences in general health determinants like standards of housing, transport services, public safety and employment prospects.

How to campaign for climate and nature action from mayors

Influencing mayoral strategies

The strategy development process will likely vary significantly between MSAs, although the government will issue development guidance for some strategies. For example, here’s the government’s guidance on developing Local Growth Plans.

It's unlikely that mayors will be deeply involved in the granular detail of strategies, but they’ll want to steer their overall direction as they’re developed.

Whatever the method deployed by each MSA to develop their strategies, it's worthwhile following these useful tips:

Identify and build relationships with the lead officer who’s responsible for developing a particular strategy. Regular check-ins with the strategy development team will keep you up to date on progress and provide opportunities to have your viewpoint heard.
Find and keep an eye on the Forward Plan for your MSA. This document will set out the timeline for strategic development over the next year.
Identify and build relationships with local partners who’d be good allies in influencing these strategies.
Look out for public consultations. Your MSA will consult at various stages of the development process through a mixture of online consultations and physical or online events to gather feedback. Make sure you share these consultations with the wider environmental movement in your area to increase the number of responses calling for ambitious action. Some MSAs will have bespoke consultation platforms and mailing lists where you can keep track of these opportunities.
Find out which committees will be scrutinising which strategies. The MSA’s committee structure will be a mix of politicians from the constituent local authorities and representatives of business and wider civic society. It’s beneficial to share your ideas on how strategies could be improved with these individuals.
Find out when draft strategies will be presented to the combined authority board. This is the point at which a draft strategy will be approved and adopted. Although this stage is important and a great media opportunity, its unlikely to be much more than a rubber-stamping exercise unless the board members feel political pressure for change.

Tactics for success

Although this guidance sets out the policy areas that campaigners can seek to influence, mayors and MSAs need to feel the pressure for progress from a wide range of people calling for strong action on climate and nature. So, as with many other aspects of campaigning, it’s important to identify and involve community partners and marginalised groups that support your campaign aims.

Key elements to remember are:

Prioritise. This guidance sets out the opportunities to influence your mayor, but it’s a major challenge to cover all of these plans and strategies. You’ll need to pick your battles depending on the impact you could have, where your group’s interest and expertise lie, what partnerships and public engagement you could build and what previous campaigns your group has worked on. However, the government has stated that all strategies will need to align with Local Growth Plans, so we’d recommend they’re at the top of your group’s to-do list.
Identify opportunities to amplify youth voices. Work with youth organisations to identify where these policy areas will have significant impact on young people. Particular examples might include the Local Transport Strategy and bus franchising.
Engage young people and marginalised communities and work specifically with these groups to influence policy, including through community organising.
Build relationships with partner groups through stunts and actions. Our guide to building local alliances will be essential reading for this.
Develop good organising practices including community mapping for each policy area, and work with partners to develop effective campaigning and engagement strategies.
Research your mayor. What are their interests? What public commitments have they made? What events are they attending that you can get to and ask questions?
Build relationships with officers and decision makers within the MSA and become their “critical friend”.
Understand the need for both insider lobbying and public campaigning.
Identify the links between these policy areas and national Friends of the Earth campaigns. For instance, Friends of the Earth’s Big Climate Plan is calling for a statutory climate duty for mayors.

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