Debbie Abrahams, MP for Saddleworth, has spoken of her devastation at the moorland fire that has scarred the area around Dove Stone Reservoir. Fire crews were still working at the site weeks after the blaze broke out, despite recent rain.

With the emergency response still winding down, attention is turning to how large fires like this can be prevented in future. Ms Abrahams believes the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, can play a part, having seen the area's challenges for himself.

In 2019, when he was Mayor of Greater Manchester, Mr Burnham visited Dove Stone and met Dr Andrew Taylor, chair of the Greenfield and Grasscroft Residents Association, and other concerned residents. He heard about problems including moorland fires.

At the time he said: "You will be hard pressed to find a more picturesque spot in Manchester. It's amazing. We want to support the management group at the site to see if there is more we can do to help them. I hope we can create a way forward that everybody can get behind."

Ms Abrahams said having a Prime Minister who knows the area could make a difference. She thanked Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service for its work over recent weeks, and said statutory agencies and organisations such as United Utilities should be held to account.

The MP, who has lived in the area for more than 40 years, said she had kept a close watch on the fire as it reached its peak. When the first outbreak happened, she was in Parliament but came home to knock on doors and check residents were all right.

"This has been my home for 40-odd years. I'm back here and this is where I live. It's where I hold so dear. Lots of friends and community members that I really cherish," she said.

Mr Burnham's move to Downing Street triggered the election of a new Mayor of Greater Manchester. Labour's Bev Craig won that contest, and Ms Abrahams said she would make sure Saddleworth is not forgotten.

"I am going to hold her to her pledge about making sure that areas across Greater Manchester, including here in Saddleworth and the rest of Oldham, get their fair share of the growth that we've seen," she said.

"Andy has done a fantastic job. Greater Manchester's growing at twice the rate of the rest of the country, we need to see a little bit of that."