Bicep, Massive Attack, Thom Yorke and more urge Burnham "to reject development of the Rosebank oilfield"

Bicep, Massive Attack and Thom Yorke are among the musicians who have written to Andy Burnham, urging him to reject plans for more oil and gas drilling in the North Sea.

The letter, signed by more than 200 artists, called on the British Prime Minister to reject the Rosebank oilfield, warning the project will fail to lower energy bills or provide energy security as most of the oil is likely to be exported.

Other signatories include: The Cure's Robert Smith, Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream; Jacob Collier; Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and Singer Romy.

The government's consultation on the project closed today. Ministers will now decide on its future as well as that of the Jackdaw gasfield off Aberdeen.

The company behind both projects, Adura, has said the projects would result in £10.8bn in investment and support 3,500 jobs at the peak of construction, with 880 employees over its lifetime.

Music industry climate charity EarthPercent and campaign group Uplift argue that extracting fossil fuels from the UK's largest remaining untapped oilfield will accelerate climate chaos.

"The climate crisis is no longer something we fear for future generations; it is shaping our lives today," wrote artists in their letter.

"Heatwaves are disrupting schools, workplaces, hospitals, transport networks, festivals and live events."

Brian Eno, co-founder of EarthPercent, said Burnham had previously stood with artists and campaigners calling for an end to fossil fuel expansion.

"He has a choice to make," Eno said. "He can stand with the fossil fuel industry and approve Rosebank, or he can stand with the people who will live with the consequences of that decision.

"We are already seeing what a hotter world looks like, with record heat and devastating wildfires across Britain and Europe. At this point, continuing to expand fossil fuel production isn't pragmatism - it's a failure to face reality."

Production at Rosebank - and Jackdaw - was initially approved by the previous Conservative government.

After a legal challenge from campaign group Greenpeace, decisions were put out for consultation last month. Suzi Shingler of the campaign group Stop Rosebank said there had been "radio silence" from Burnham on climate change. "The devastating wildfires that are tearing across the UK are not because of disposable barbeques. They are caused by climate change and are only set to get worse," she said.

Read the Open Letter from EarthPercent in full - here.