The government had previously said it would commit to new clean air targets as part of the Environment Act by the end of October 2022. Unfortunately the government announced on 28 October that it would not be able to publish targets by the end of the month as required by the Act.
Sarah Woolnough, CEO at Asthma + Lung UK, said:
“The government’s silence on air pollution is deafening. Across the country, millions of people are forced to breathe air that is so dirty it breaks international laws and could stunt children’s lung growth, cause lung conditions like cancer and trigger existing conditions including asthma. Having new legal targets to reduce pollution levels would have put us on a path towards cleaner air – this problem is not going away and instead of acting with the urgency desperately needed, the government has just kicked the can down the road yet again.
“We cannot and should not sit by as more children are forced to live, learn and play in toxic levels of air pollution. The government needs to clean up its act as this delay will cost lives. We urge the government to develop a plan to tackle this public health emergency head on and implement new legal targets as quickly as possible. These targets should be set in line with recommendations by the World Health Organization and be achieved by 2030 at the very latest.”