More government action needed on air pollution

The British Heart Foundation has stressed that the government must go further and faster with plans to tackle air pollution by seizing a unique opportunity to clean up the country’s toxic air.

Analysis by the charity reveals that approximately 15 million people in the UK live in areas where average levels of tiny toxic particles in the air exceed guidelines set out by the World Health Organization (WHO). This means almost a quarter of the population is likely to be exposed to dangerous levels of these particles.

The UK currently subscribes to EU limits on levels of PM2.5 but they are not as strict as those set out by the WHO, and progress towards reducing levels of major air pollutants has been mixed since the previous government’s Clean Air Strategy was published in January 2019.

A year on from that strategy, the BHF says that the nation's health cannot wait. Promising first steps must become great strides forward, the first of which should be adopting the WHO’s strict air pollution limits into UK law by 2030.

In addition to stricter air pollution limits, the BHF is calling for: charging Clean Air Zones to be implemented in all areas that are in breach of the WHO guidelines; an acceleration of plans to invest in cycling and walking infrastructure; and a national public awareness campaign run by Public Health England, among other measures.

Jacob West, BHF director of Healthcare Innovation, said: “This government has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to take brave political action in cleaning up our toxic air. Tackling a public health emergency on this scale requires serious and sustained commitment. This could mean changes that might not be easy or convenient for organisations or individuals, but they will prove crucial to protecting people’s health.

“The uncomfortable truth is that UK heart and circulatory deaths attributed to air pollution could exceed 160,000 over the next decade unless we take radical steps now. We can’t see them, but every day, we all breathe in tiny toxic particles which damage our heart and circulatory health. They are an invisible killer. Everyone can play their part in demanding a healthier environment for all. We are urging people to write to their MP to demand a change to the law. The more pressure we put on decision makers, the better our chances of cleaning up our air.”