Recommendations & Conclusions
10 items
2
Recommendation
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
There is a high level of uncertainty in government’s model for assessing pollution levels, which may mean that further areas of poor air quality might be missed by the programme. Government uses a national model to identify areas that are likely to be breaching air quality limits, and uses this …
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There is a high level of uncertainty in government’s model for assessing pollution levels, which may mean that further areas of poor air quality might be missed by the programme. Government uses a national model to identify areas that are likely to be breaching air quality limits, and uses this to direct local authorities to take action. The national model does not directly use the results of monitoring by local authorities; instead, it uses a national network of monitoring stations. The model is regularly updated to take account of differences to local modelling, however government estimates that overall uncertainty in the model remains at the ‘allowable limit’ of +/- 30%. There is no formal margin of tolerance to identify local authorities for inclusion in the programme, and some local authorities are concerned this may result in an unfair situation whereby areas with high levels of NO2 pollution are not required to take action due to the national model not predicting a breach. Recommendation: As part of the Treasury Minute response, the government should set out how it will satisfy itself that all areas in exceedance of pollution limits have been identified and included in the programme, taking into account the high levels of uncertainty associated with the national model.
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Government response AI summary
The government states that the best available evidence has been used to identify areas exceeding pollution limits and that the national model meets uncertainty requirements. They will continue to improve the model and have increased the number of monitoring locations. They will consider local authority …
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HM Treasury
5
Recommendation
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
Government is not yet taking a sufficiently integrated approach to tackling the problem of poor air quality. Measures to tackle air pollution on the strategic road network risk displacing heavy vehicle traffic onto local roads. Although government is aware of this risk, we are not clear what specific actions are …
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Government is not yet taking a sufficiently integrated approach to tackling the problem of poor air quality. Measures to tackle air pollution on the strategic road network risk displacing heavy vehicle traffic onto local roads. Although government is aware of this risk, we are not clear what specific actions are being taken to work with local authorities to manage this risk, and National Highways has not published criteria that set out the point at which this possibility renders a particular measure non-viable. In addition to working with local authorities, central government is starting to develop opportunities Tackling local air quality breaches 7 to work with local health and education providers to support air quality communications campaigns, such as through a pilot project working with around 40 GPs and awards through the local air quality grants programme. The Departments for Business, Energy, Innovation and Skills (BEIS) and for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) are also important partners for addressing issues of air quality. Recommendation: The update to the National Air Pollution Control Programme should set out how government will ensure full integration between the different areas of responsibility with an impact on air quality.
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the recommendation and states they have consulted on a revised National Air Pollution Control Programme (NAPCP) which includes robust actionable measures for further consideration to deliver compliance with the 2030 targets for all air pollutants.
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HM Treasury
6
Recommendation
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
There is a lot resting on the updated plan that government expects to publish if 2030 air quality targets are to be met. The UK may have missed its target for national ammonia emissions in 2020, and existing policy measures will not be sufficient to achieve the 2030 emissions ceilings …
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There is a lot resting on the updated plan that government expects to publish if 2030 air quality targets are to be met. The UK may have missed its target for national ammonia emissions in 2020, and existing policy measures will not be sufficient to achieve the 2030 emissions ceilings set for the UK for a further three pollutants. At the time we took evidence Government planned to publish in September 2022 an update to the National Air Pollution Control Programme, and this must be robust and realistic enough to ensure that targets are met. Past action to tackle local breaches of air quality limits has fallen significantly behind schedule, and similar delays at the national level would mean targets being missed. Meeting these targets will require action beyond the transport sector, such as by reducing domestic wood-burning (which accounts for a quarter of fine particulate matter emissions) and addressing ammonia use in farming (around 87% of ammonia emissions). Recommendation: The government must ensure that the plan it publishes includes robust, actionable measures that will result in compliance with the 2030 targets for all air pollutants, and ensure it has strong governance arrangements to monitor progress against its plan and take decisive action if progress falls behind expectations. 8 Tackling local air quality breaches Tackling Local Air Quality breaches
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the recommendation and states they have consulted on a revised National Air Pollution Control Programme (NAPCP) that includes robust actionable measures to deliver compliance with the 2030 targets for all air pollutants.
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HM Treasury
14
Recommendation
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
The UK Air website is government’s main source of communication on air quality, but it is fairly impenetrable to the general public.11 While the website provides a high- level air pollution forecast, and allows users to download air quality datasets, it does not clearly present information on the legal limits …
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The UK Air website is government’s main source of communication on air quality, but it is fairly impenetrable to the general public.11 While the website provides a high- level air pollution forecast, and allows users to download air quality datasets, it does not clearly present information on the legal limits for each pollutant, actions taken to date by the UK government and the progress being made, to put the air quality data it gives in context. The annual Air Pollution in the UK report only gives a breakdown of air quality information by the zones that are used for reporting compliance with legal limits on a national basis, which is not informative to local residents.12
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees to improve communication of air quality information to the public through a comprehensive Air Quality Information System (AQIS) Review, with outcomes published on UK-AIR and a final report in early 2024, and a major overhaul of the UK-Air website by March 2025.
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HM Treasury
16
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
National Highways acknowledge that the accessibility of the government’s data on air quality is an issue, and Defra told us that it is reviewing its social media and online offering over the next 18 months. It particularly highlighted the need to test the quality of its messaging for specific groups, …
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National Highways acknowledge that the accessibility of the government’s data on air quality is an issue, and Defra told us that it is reviewing its social media and online offering over the next 18 months. It particularly highlighted the need to test the quality of its messaging for specific groups, such as older people and people from different ethnic minority communities.18 Modelling air quality
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Government response AI summary
The government recognizes the need to effectively communicate air quality information to the public and launched a comprehensive Air Quality Information System (AQIS) Review to ensure members of the public have what they need; outcomes will be published on UK-AIR with a final report in …
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HM Treasury
17
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
Government uses national and local modelling, together with two national networks of monitoring stations, to direct its actions on air quality, with directions to local authorities issued primarily on the basis of a national model identifying areas of likely exceedance of air quality targets.19 The national network consists of around …
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Government uses national and local modelling, together with two national networks of monitoring stations, to direct its actions on air quality, with directions to local authorities issued primarily on the basis of a national model identifying areas of likely exceedance of air quality targets.19 The national network consists of around 430 unique monitoring stations across two separate networks; the UK Urban NO2 Network, established in 2020, and the older Automatic Urban and Rural Network.20 The Joint Air Quality Unit estimates that the overall uncertainty in the national model is around +/- 30%, as it was in 2017, although it has found that the model results are now more closely aligned to the results produced by the more detailed local models.21 The NAO reported that some local authorities that had been directed to act by government are concerned that this could create an unfair situation whereby other local areas might be experiencing high levels of NO2 pollution but not be required to take action because the national model had not projected a breach of local concentration limits.22
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Government response AI summary
The government stated it is satisfied with its existing modelling and monitoring networks, which meet compliance requirements, and continues to implement targeted improvements, acknowledging that local authorities can share evidence of potential breaches.
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HM Treasury
19
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
DfT told us that it takes account of the uncertainty in the model when identifying local authorities requiring action, and that it worked with local authorities to update and reopen the model as required based on local monitoring.25 However Defra and DfT subsequently wrote to us to explain that there …
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DfT told us that it takes account of the uncertainty in the model when identifying local authorities requiring action, and that it worked with local authorities to update and reopen the model as required based on local monitoring.25 However Defra and DfT subsequently wrote to us to explain that there is not a formal margin of tolerance; instead, the national modelling is continually updated to reflect the latest evidence, and additional local authorities can be brought into the programme where new exceedances are identified.26 16 Q 14 17 Q 23 18 Qq 20, 57 19 C&AG’s Report, paras 2.5, 2.9 20 C&AG’s Report, paras 2.9, 2.10; UK Air Website 21 C&AG’s Report, para 2.12 22 C&AG’s Report, para 2.13 23 Q 7 24 Q 8 25 Q 61 26 Follow-up response submitted by Defra and DfT dated 11 July 2022 Tackling local air quality breaches 11
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is satisfied that the best available evidence is used to identify areas needing action, continues to improve the national model, and has already established a new monitoring network to increase the number of locations assessing NO2 compliance.
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HM Treasury
22
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
We asked if departments had considered revisiting the assumption of a clean air zone as the baseline for judging local authority plans, given that there have been delays to implementation. DfT told us that the evidence from the latest annual assessment is that the clean air zone is the fastest …
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We asked if departments had considered revisiting the assumption of a clean air zone as the baseline for judging local authority plans, given that there have been delays to implementation. DfT told us that the evidence from the latest annual assessment is that the clean air zone is the fastest way to achieve compliance, but that they are open to other approaches if local authorities can put together a package of measures that would achieve compliance faster.33
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Government response AI summary
Local authorities are responsible for developing their own Clean Air Plans, with government support; they can use measures other than Clean Air Zones if compliance can be achieved as quickly.
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HM Treasury
30
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
In addition to working with local authorities, the Department for Transport and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs needs to ensure it is working with other sectors with either an interest in, or an influence on, air quality, such as the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy …
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In addition to working with local authorities, the Department for Transport and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs needs to ensure it is working with other sectors with either an interest in, or an influence on, air quality, such as the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.53 Clean Air in London also highlighted to us the need to view the Government’s plans, spending and action, or lack thereof, to tackle air pollution in the wider context of: ‘One air’, covering both local air pollution and greenhouse gases.54 Similarly, UK100 highlighted the potential benefits of taking an integrated approach to clean air and net zero, while also warning that there are some areas where local authorities will need to carefully consider their approaches to ensure that policies do not have unintended consequences – as experienced with the promotion of diesel vehicles as more fuel efficient, which led to increased levels of NO2, worsening local air quality.55
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees and has consulted on a revised National Air Pollution Control Programme (NAPCP) with actionable measures to deliver compliance with the 2030 targets and ensure full integration between different areas of responsibility.
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HM Treasury
31
Conclusion
Twenty-Second Report - Tackling local a…
Accepted
The Department for Transport highlighted that local authorities are seeing addressing air quality not as a compliance issue, but as something to be considered more broadly as part of transport and local regeneration policies.56 We also heard about a pilot project working with GPs to provide advice on air quality …
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The Department for Transport highlighted that local authorities are seeing addressing air quality not as a compliance issue, but as something to be considered more broadly as part of transport and local regeneration policies.56 We also heard about a pilot project working with GPs to provide advice on air quality in local communities, and about how the local air quality grants programme provides support for education initiatives in schools.57 Meeting the 2030 targets
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Government response AI summary
The government disagreed with the committee's implied premise, asserting that local authorities are important partners and it already engages regularly with them and provides significant air quality grants for public awareness.
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HM Treasury