Local authority action to tackle air pollution has saved almost 14,000 lives in England and delivered an estimated £15 billion in health and economic benefits, according to the first study to measure the impact of council-led clean air policies.
The report, published today (13th July) to coincide with UK100’s Breathing Life: A Decade of Local Air Quality Ambition conference in London, estimates that local and regional action prevented 13,722 deaths between 2019 and 2025. The figure is roughly equivalent to the population of Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Using the Government’s methodology for valuing health and productivity gains, researchers calculated that cleaner air generated around £15 billion in benefits by reducing hospital admissions, GP visits, lost working days and wider economic costs linked to poor air quality.
The report argues that councils and combined authorities have played a crucial role in improving air quality, accounting for around 35% of England’s overall progress during the six-year period, with national policies responsible for the remainder.
However, UK100 says even greater gains could have been achieved if strategic authorities had been given the resources and support to make fuller use of existing powers over transport, planning, housing, buses and public health.
Researchers estimate that a stronger local leadership model could have prevented a further 3,900 deaths and delivered an additional £2.4 billion in benefits between 2019 and 2025.
The report highlights successful initiatives across the country, including schemes in London, Bath and North East Somerset, Greater Manchester, Oxford, Nottingham and Hertfordshire.
London is presented as one of the clearest examples of progress. Separate analysis published last month found air pollution-related deaths in the capital have fallen by around 40% since 2019. Roadside NO2 levels have dropped by 41%, while fine particulate pollution has fallen by 28%. Transport for London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone is credited with keeping roadside NO2 concentrations around 27% lower than they would otherwise have been.
Alongside the findings, UK100 is calling for strategic authorities to adopt a new Regional Clean Air Leadership Model designed to embed air quality considerations across transport, planning, housing and public health.
The organisation is also urging the Government to introduce a new Clean Air Act with World Health Organization-aligned targets, provide long-term funding for local clean air programmes and develop a national indoor air quality strategy.
The report was launched as UK100 marked its tenth anniversary and 70 years since the UK’s first Clean Air Act, with local leaders gathering to discuss the next phase of action to improve air quality across England.
Christopher Hammond, chief executive of UK100, said: ‘For years, the story of air pollution has understandably been told through the harm it does. What this research shows, for the first time, is the other side of the ledger: how local leaders, working together, have helped prevent almost 14,000 unnecessary and untimely deaths and saved around £15 billion by getting on and creating better places to live in.
‘These interventions haven’t always been welcomed initially, but with time have become accepted and loved by communities. The difference made by those leaders, both past and present, is a record to be proud of. But with the rollout of devolution and local government reorganisation, the local-national coordination will be critical to keeping up the momentum and improving the lives of thousands more in towns and cities across England.’
The report can be read here.
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