Air Quality: London

Lord Dubs Excerpts

Tuesday 24th March 2015 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Dubs]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking in conjunction with the Mayor of London to tackle air quality in London.

[Baroness Garden of Frognal (LD)]

My Lords, the mayor is responsible for working towards air quality objectives in London. Nationally, the Government have committed £2 billion since 2011 to address air pollution. As part of this, the Government work closely with the mayor, the GLA and London boroughs to improve air quality, including providing support via our air quality grant fund for a range of projects.

[Lord Dubs (Lab)]

My Lords, will the Minister confirm that last week the Mayor of London issued a warning that pollution in London had reached a dangerous level? That level was so dangerous that advice had to be given to thousands of Londoners—people with certain health conditions, young and old—that they should not go outside and should not take strenuous exercise. Is it not a disgrace that our capital city does not have decent air quality?

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

My Lords, the poor air quality event last week was due to pollution brought in via winds from continental Europe—