Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what evidence exists of the direct and indirect impact of air pollution on (a) crop yields, (b) biodiversity, (c) pollinator, (d) rain, (e) stratospheric ozone, (f) water quality and (g) soil quality.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Evidence is set out in the recent house of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee’s Nitrogen report:
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5901/ldselect/ldenvcl/161/16102.htmand and the Critical loads expert report Air_Pollution_Trends_Report_2024.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the ten most common causes of air pollution in England in (a) ambient air and (b) indoor air.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Data on our largest sources of air pollution emissions can be found at Emissions of air pollutants - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the national targets, requirements and performance standards are for ambient air pollution and national emission ceilings in the Air Quality Environment Act target delivery plan and the 10-year Health Plan.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
National targets and requirements for ambient air pollution are set out in the Air Quality Standards Regulations (2010) and the Environmental Targets (Fine Particulate Matter) Regulations 2023. Emissions targets and requirements are set out in the National Emissions Ceilings Regulations (2018). Performance against these targets and requirements are reported annually in the air pollution in the UK report and national emissions inventory respectively.
The 10 Year Health Plan for England sets out commitments to reduce emissions and improve awareness of and communications on the health impacts of air pollution.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support change on ambient air quality across Government.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are determined to improve air quality and protect the public from the harm of pollution. That is why we are taking steps to reform areas like simpler industrial permitting to reduce emissions, and tightening standards for new wood burning appliances to help reduce health impacts.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of data capture and analysis for air quality within England.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Assessment of data capture is a routine activity to ensure air quality monitoring meets legislative requirements (data capture of at least 85% of the measurement period (i.e. at least 85% of days in a year) is required for compliance reporting. Networks operated for this purpose have suitable regimes of maintenance and servicing to minimise instrument down time and maximise data capture.
Analysis of air quality in England is presented within our accredited official statistics ( https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/air-quality-statistics) and our annual compliance report (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/air-pollution-in-the-uk-2024). Both provide more detail on the data capture requirements and data capture statistics achieved in the relevant year.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding and devolved powers to ensure the comprehensive monitoring of air quality in England.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is responsible for the national monitoring of air quality (which includes England) through 16 different networks monitoring various pollutants. Departmental budgets, including budgets for air quality monitoring, are determined through departmental spending reviews.
Devolved powers through the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) framework and the London Local Air Quality Management (LLAQM) require local authorities to review and assess air quality in their areas. These assessments include air quality monitoring and the production of annual status reports which are funded through their own budgets.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of whether examples of best practice exist in England to achieve compliance with legislation and regulation to improve local air quality in each of (a) ambient air and (b) indoor air.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra supports local authorities in implementing their statutory air quality duties by providing both resources and practical tools. A key example is the Air Quality Hub, which enables local authorities to collaborate, share best practice, and access guidance, case studies, and training materials. This platform strengthens alignment between local delivery and national objectives by ensuring that evidence, lessons learned, and emerging policy priorities are shared consistently across the local authority network.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she had made of the adequacy of alignment between national government targets and obligations and local government actions to improve ambient air quality in England.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
National targets and local actions are aligned through statutory duties that require local authorities to assess air quality, designate Air Quality Management Areas, and produce Air Quality Action Plans tied to national air quality objectives. Local authorities retain flexibility to tailor interventions to local circumstances.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of national targets, requirements and performance standards for air quality and national emission ceilings in protecting public health, climate and the environment.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra regularly assesses the adequacy of national air quality targets and emission ceilings through statutory annual reporting and formal reviews of the Environmental Improvement Plan.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which Government departments other than his Department are able to have the biggest impact on improving levels of ambient air pollution; and how their policies seek to achieve this.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Air pollution comes from many different sources and has wide-ranging impacts. Issues such as air quality, climate action, public health and nature recovery are closely linked, creating opportunities for policies that deliver benefits across all these areas. Because of this, every part of government has a role in shaping policies that help reduce air pollution and its effects.
I will continue to work collaboratively with colleagues across government to tackle key sources of pollution, such as transport, health and energy policy, which play a vital role in meeting our statutory air quality targets.