Minister for Water and Flooding (): This statement fulfils the
requirement under section 80A of Environment Act 1995, to update
Parliament on the progress and steps taken to meet air quality
standards and objectives in England over financial years 2024/25
and 2025/26.
Air quality across the UK has shown sustained improvement over
recent decades with emissions of all key air pollutants showing a
declining trend. These long-term reductions mean the UK has met
the current domestic and international emission reduction
commitments for emissions of ammonia, nitrogen oxides, sulphur
dioxide, non-methane volatile organic compounds and fine
particulate matter (PM2.5).
This progress matters for people's everyday lives: cleaner air
helps protect health, supports thriving neighbourhoods and
contributes to the Government's ambition to improve pride in
place. Cleaner air also supports sustainable economic growth by
helping people stay healthier and in work, improving productivity
and making our towns and cities more attractive places to live,
visit and invest in.
Protecting public health and the environment remains at the heart
of our approach. PM2.5 is the most harmful pollutant to human
health. Under the Environment Act 2021, we are delivering against
two separate Environment Act 2021 targets for PM2.5 - one to
reduce maximum PM2.5 concentration levels and one for reducing
the population's overall exposure. In 2024, the maximum PM2.5
concentration level measured was 11 micrograms per cubic metre of
air. Separately, PM2.5 population exposure in England has reduced
by 25% compared with 2018.
In the Environmental Improvement Plan 2025, the Government
increased the ambition of both PM2.5 interim targets. We will
review the 2040 statutory targets for PM2.5.
We are also seeing progress locally. Between 2024-2025, the
number of Air Quality Management Areas for nitrogen dioxide fell
from 435 to 352, a 19% reduction, as locations achieved sustained
compliance with the standards and objectives. Nitrogen dioxide
exceedances reported by local authorities fell again in 2024,
continuing a downward trend.
Building on this strong progress, we are continuing to take
ambitious and targeted action across key sectors to meet our air
quality standards and objectives, including:
- Clarifying delivery priorities through a rapid review and
revision of the Environmental Improvement Plan setting out clear,
measurable actions.
- Embedding PM2.5 targets into planning decisions through
interim guidance and we have launched a pilot to trial more
comprehensive guidance with planning authorities and developers.
- Strengthening public communication by acting on an expert-led
review to make air quality part of everyday conversations and
commenced work on an air quality communications toolkit for
Directors of Public Health. This included establishing a new
partnership bringing together communicators from the Government,
healthcare professionals, and the NGO sector.
- Improving transparency by modernising public access to air
quality information via new GOV.UK pages and a dedicated data
service.
- Enabling better local delivery by running practical webinars
and providing detailed guidance to help local authorities develop
more effective action plans.
- Launching a consultation on a comprehensive package of
interventions to cut fine particulate emissions from domestic
burning, including more stringent emission standards for stoves,
mandatory labelling of stoves and fuels and raised penalties for
non-compliance.
- Setting out the Government's pathway for a strengthened
environmental permitting regime for industry that supports
quicker uptake of Best Available Techniques, promotes innovation
and improves regulator efficiency.
In July 2025, the Government published Fit for the Future: 10
Year Health Plan for England, which reinforces the importance of
prevention and action on the wider determinants of health. This
includes commitments to reduce harmful exposures and improve
awareness of, and communications on, the health impacts of issues
such as air pollution. We are supporting the Government's mission
to build an NHS fit for the future by continuing to clean up the
air and protect the public from the harms of pollution.
While the direction of travel is positive, we know there is more
to do to ensure everyone benefits from cleaner air. We will
continue to tackle air pollution at all levels - helping
individuals make informed choices, supporting local communities
to take action, delivering national changes, and pursuing
coordinated international action for the benefit of both the UK
and the wider global community. We will continue to keep our
regulatory framework under review to ensure it remains effective,
proportionate and fit for the twenty first century.
A further update to the House on our progress will be provided
after the end of the financial year 2026/27.
