BHF comment
Government in unique opportunity to clean up toxic air
We are urging the Government to seize a unique opportunity to clean up the country’s toxic air by strengthening its Environment Bill.
The Government has a unique opportunity to clean up the country’s toxic air by strengthening its Environment Bill, we are saying today.
The Environment Bill 2019-2020, which was introduced into the House of Commons on 30 January, aims to “set a gold standard for improving air quality, protecting nature, increasing recycling and cutting down on plastic waste”.
To achieve this, the Bill sets out new frameworks for many areas relating to the environment. This includes setting more stringent air quality limits.
BHF-funded research has shown that exposure to air pollution, especially fine particulate matter known as PM2.5, can damage our heart in a number of ways, increasing the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
The UK currently subscribes to EU legal limits on levels of PM2.5. However, these limits do not go far enough, with up to 11,000 deaths in the UK due to a heart attack or a stroke attributable to toxic air each year.
The Environment Bill’s return to Parliament is welcome, after it didn’t complete its passage through Parliament because of the December 2019 general election.
However, the Government has an opportunity to truly protect the nation’s health, by strengthening the Bill before it becomes UK law.
We are calling for the Bill to contain a pledge to adopt the World Health Organization (WHO)’s stricter guideline limits for PM2.5into law and set them as legally-binding targets.
Jacob West, our Executive Director of Healthcare Innovation said:
“Air pollution is a public health emergency. Every year in the UK, up to 11,000 deaths due to a heart attack or stroke are attributable to toxic air.
“This is a sign that our current legal limits for air pollution are failing to protect people’s health from dangerously high levels of harmful pollutants, such as PM2.5.
“The Environment Bill’s return to Parliament is welcome, as are the Government’s encouraging pledges to set ambitious, legally-binding targets that will protect the nation’s health.
“However, to ensure that the Bill truly sets a gold standard for air quality, the legislation must adopt the World Health Organization’s recommended stricter limits and set them as legally-binding targets to drive action at pace and scale.
“As this Bill passes through Parliament, we will continue to work with the Government to strengthen its contents and ensure air pollution is framed as a major health threat.
“This is a unique opportunity to clean up our air that could help people live healthier, longer lives. We must not miss it.”