Air pollution will be the subject of the Environmental Audit
Committee's next inquiry, following a call for pitches from
experts and the public.
The Committee has today published its report on ‘The Environment
in Focus', concluding a process which had seen almost 200
suggestions, whittled down to five final ‘Dragons Den' style
pitches proposed to the cross-party group of MPs.
MPs chose to pursue an inquiry into air pollution, presented by
Jemima Hartshorn, Founder and Director, Mums for Lungs and Dr Nat
Easton, Air Quality Researcher and Specialist Policy Officer,
University of Southampton.
The Clean Air Act 1956 established the UK as a world leader for
many years. Yet seventy years on, research estimates that
long-term exposure to air pollution causes up to 43,000 early
deaths a year in the UK, and an estimated £50 billion in
healthcare costs. Many people are unaware of the link between air
pollution and serious health problems such as heart disease and
dementia.
The new inquiry will be launched with full terms of reference in
2026.
Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee MP said:
“I would like to thank all those who appeared before the
Committee. All the pitches we heard were passionate,
well-evidenced and thoughtful.
The Committee ultimately chose to pursue an inquiry into air
pollution. The UK was once a world leader in air pollution, but
we risk falling behind as other countries progress.
This is an issue of equality too. It is many of the poorest in
our society who are most vulnerable to the serious health impacts
of air pollution.
I look forward to launching this inquiry in 2026. I encourage
anyone with experience of, or expertise in, air pollution or
public health to consider submitting evidence.
We were very much impressed by the pitches we saw, and have also
agreed to consider whether data centres and Ancient woodlands and
peatlands might also be investigated in 2026.”
The other ideas considered by MPs were:
- ‘The environmental impact of data centres and artificial
intelligence', presented by Miss Rowena Shivam, student of
Sustainable Built Environment, Energy and Resources, University
College London and CEO and Founder, BNG Smart
- ‘The environmental importance of woodlands and peatlands',
presented by Dr Chris Nichols, Head of Conservation Evidence and
Outcomes, The Woodland Trust and Ms Sally Nex, Advocate, The
Peat-free Partnership
- ‘Assessing UK resilience to multi-hazard weather risks and
climate breakdown', presented by Dr Susan O'Leary, Director,
Centre for Research into Sustainability, Royal Holloway,
University of London and Dr John Hillier, Loughborough University
- ‘Comparing the UK's environmental regime with those of
countries subject to oversight by the European Environmental
Agency', presented by Ben Reynolds, Executive Director, IEEP UK
and David Baldock, Honorary Fellow, IEEP UK.
