Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 2 November 2022 to Question 63894 on Air Pollution, what progress his Department has made on delivering the Government's commitments made in the Clean Air Strategy 2019.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Delivery of our Clean Air Strategy continues through Defra’s Air Quality and Industrial Emissions Programme and the Environment Improvement Plan Clean Air commitments (published 31 January 2023). Recent achievements include:
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 11 May 2023 to Question 183644 on Air Pollution: Greater London, whether the fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution measured as PM2.5 should be multiplied by the (a) number of deaths from all causes aged 30 years and older and (b) total number of deaths to calculate the number of deaths attributable to PM2.5.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution, measured as PM2.5, for Greater London in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 was provided in the answer of 11 May 2023 to Question 183644. The provided values represented the percentage of annual deaths from all causes in those aged 30 and older attributed to PM2.5.
In estimating the burden of long-term exposure to air pollution mixture in 2019 in the United Kingdom, namely 29,000 to 43,000 deaths for adults aged 30 years old and over, the total number of deaths for that age group was used. A report detailing a methodology that local authorities can use to estimate local mortality burdens associated with particulate air pollution within their area was published by the former Public Health England, now the UK Health Security Agency, in 2014.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with local authorities on steps to improve air quality.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra officials have regular discussions with local authorities, including on local air quality management and supporting local action. The Joint Air Quality Unit works closely with local authorities in the NO2 Programme to develop and deliver Clean Air Plans to deliver compliance with legal NO2 limits in the shortest possible time.
The revised Air Quality Strategy published on 28 April 2023, provides a framework for local authorities to make best use of their powers in improving air quality for their communities. Building on the Strategy, in September of this year we held a national event for local authorities across England to promote the powers available to local authorities to improve air quality, raise the profile of air quality within local authorities and strengthen understanding of the impacts of air pollution.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to publish the annual estimate of the fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution in 2022.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department plans to publish the annual estimate of the fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution for 2022 for England in the Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) in early 2024 which can be found at the following link:
https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/public-health-outcomes-framework
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department provides to those participating in military exercises during episodes of high air pollution.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
As set out in Joint Service Publication (JSP) 375, Management of health and safety in Defence, military exercises must be risk assessed to identify and manage potential risks. The accountable person, who may be the commander or manager, must identify hazards and whether reasonable steps are being taken to prevent harm. This process is conducted prior to conducting military exercises and may be further refined during the exercise as part of a dynamic risk assessment.
In incidences where there is a risk of poor air quality, specific information on its prevention and mitigation are provided to all service personnel through Force Health Protection Instructions. In certain situations, deployment restrictions may be implemented for those deemed at greatest risk of poor air quality.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the potential impact of festival bonfires and fireworks on air pollution.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Data from Defra’s air quality monitoring networks is held on the UK AIR website. We often measure temporary elevated levels of PM2.5 in some locations on the 5th of November. Further information can also be found in ‘Air Pollution in the UK’ annual reports.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 24 May 2023 to Question 185868 on Air Pollution: Schools, whether she has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of the minimum filter class from BS EN 13779.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department’s guidance, ‘Building Bulletin 101: Ventilation, thermal comfort and indoor air quality’, refers to BS EN 13779 (Ventilation for non-residential buildings: performance requirements for ventilation and room-conditioning systems) as additional guidance specifically on filtration, which describes how minimum filtration classes can be applied to schools.
BS EN 13779 is owned by the British Standards Institute and the department has not made any specific tests in relation to this standard.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussion she has had with the Office of Environmental Protection on (a) air quality and (b) its health impacts.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Department has regular discussions with the Office for Environmental Protection, on a range of issues. We are taking wide-ranging actions on improving air quality as set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan 2023 to drive down air pollution and its health impacts.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she expects the World Health Organization’s Air Quality Guideline levels for (a) PM2.5 and (b) NO2 pollution to be met.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The WHO air quality guidelines are intended to inform the setting of air quality standards and are not ready-made targets for adoption as they do not take into account achievability or individual countries’ circumstances. For example, our evidence strongly suggests that the 2021 WHO guideline level for PM2.5 is not possible to achieve in many locations in England due to the level of natural PM2.5 and pollution blown in from outside the country. We do consider the WHO guidelines as part of an evidence led process when setting new air quality targets including the recently set PM2.5 targets which support continuous improvement in PM2.5 levels up to 2040. Our priority for NO2 remains working with local authorities to take action to achieve compliance with current NO2 limits in the shortest possible time.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 26 May 2023 to Question 183644 on Air Pollution: Greater London, whether the estimate for the number of deaths attributable to PM2.5 includes deaths attributed to covid-19 in the period between 2018 and 2022.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution indicator, measured as PM2.5, represents the percentage of annual deaths from all causes in those aged 30 years old and over attributed to PM2.5. As the 2020 data for this indicator includes the period from March 2020 onwards, the mortality data used in its calculation will reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, attributable fractions in this period should be interpreted with caution.