Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what research they have (1) commissioned, and (2) published, on the impact of exposure to air pollution on foetal development during pregnancy.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), formerly Public Health England, contributed to a report by the Royal College of Physicians’ and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health that examined the impact of exposure to air pollution across the course of a lifetime. It states that from the earliest stages of development DNA is susceptible to changes arising from exposure to air pollution. During critical periods of development, any interference can harm organs and tissues or change their developmental trajectory so that their function is impaired. The susceptibility of the development of lungs and the brain to air pollution are highlighted in the report.

UKHSA also provides the scientific secretariat to the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants, which is currently preparing a report considering the evidence linking maternal exposure to air pollution during pregnancy, with preterm birth, low birth weight and stillbirth.