Recommendation 13

The Department for Transport considers that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic was a significant factor in delays seen by the Programme.8 The National Audit Office reported that although there was a clear impact from the pandemic, government did not have summary data on the extent to which other factors have also contributed, and highlighted that two local authorities have publicly attributed delays in their implementation of Clean Air Zones to the delivery of the central Clean Air Service.9 Gareth Davies CB, Second Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport, told us that, in his personal judgement, one-third of the delays seen has been due to the complexity of the programme and issues around the IT platform, and two-thirds due to Covid.10 Public information on Air Quality