Thank you for contacting me about air quality.

Our air is now cleaner than at any point since the industrial revolution, but there is more to be done.

The Government’s Clean Air Strategy aims to cut air pollution, backed up by new primary legislation.  The Strategy details how the UK will go further and faster than the EU in reducing exposure to particulate matter pollution.  It sets out a goal to halve the number of people living in locations with concentrations of particulate matter above WHO guidelines, legislate to give councils more powers to improve air quality and ensure only the cleanest domestic fuels and stoves can be sold.  It has been described by the WHO as 'an example for the rest of the world to follow'.

The Environment Bill will build on this Strategy, and highlight our drive to go further to clean our air and fight air pollution so children and young people can live longer healthier lives.  The Bill sets an ambitious, legally-binding target to reduce fine particulate matter, and increase local powers to address sources of air pollution, enabling local authorities to work with families to cut harmful pollution from domestic burning by using cleaner fuels.  This target will be among the most ambitious in the world and improve the quality of millions of people’s lives.   

I will be supporting the Environment Bill.