Clean Air and the Environment Bill Lords Committee Stage Briefing: Clause 2 (Amendment 20)

The document advocates for Amendment 20 to the Environment Bill, which would require the UK to reduce PM2.5 levels to 10 µg/m3 or less by January 1, 2030. It argues that current legal limits are insufficient to protect public health, citing the social cost of air pollution at over £20bn annually and the specific risks to children and those with pre-existing conditions. The briefing asserts that achieving WHO guidelines is technically feasible and necessary for the UK to demonstrate global leadership in air quality, especially ahead of COP26.

• The current UK legal limits for outdoor PM2.5 concentrations are more than double the 2005 World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 10 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3).
• Air pollution imposes a significant economic burden on the UK, with the Royal College of Physicians estimating the social cost to individuals and the health service at over £20bn per year.
• Meeting WHO guidelines could provide an annual economic benefit of £1.6bn to the UK, comprising £1bn from 40,000 additional 'working years' and £600m from reduced sickness-related absences.
• A large portion of the UK population is exposed to unsafe air quality; approximately 15 million people live in areas where PM2.5 levels exceed WHO guidelines, including over 8,500 schools and nearly 3,000 health centres.
• The UK's existing annual PM2.5 limit is less ambitious than standards in other developed nations, including Switzerland, Norway, Australia, and the USA.
• Technical analysis commissioned by Defra in 2019 indicates that achieving WHO guidelines for PM2.5 across the UK is technically feasible, with existing commitments potentially covering 95% of the required progress.

APA

ClientEarth (2021). Clean Air and the Environment Bill Lords Committee Stage Briefing: Clause 2 (Amendment 20). https://www.clientearth.org/media/cnslr5kb/healthy-air-campaign-environment-bill-house-of-lords-committee-stage-briefing-june-2021.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Clean Air and the Environment Bill Lords Committee Stage Briefing: Clause 2 (Amendment 20). 2021. https://www.clientearth.org/media/cnslr5kb/healthy-air-campaign-environment-bill-house-of-lords-committee-stage-briefing-june-2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=Clean Air and the Environment Bill Lords Committee Stage Briefing: Clause 2 (Amendment 20) |date=June 2021 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/cnslr5kb/healthy-air-campaign-environment-bill-house-of-lords-committee-stage-briefing-june-2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2021clean, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Clean Air and the Environment Bill Lords Committee Stage Briefing: Clause 2 (Amendment 20)}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/cnslr5kb/healthy-air-campaign-environment-bill-house-of-lords-committee-stage-briefing-june-2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }