Air Pollution

(asked on 7th October 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 1 October 2020 to Question 91717, how much funding his Department (a) has allocated in the last five years and (b) plans to allocate in 2021-22 to tackle pollution overseas.


Answered by
James Duddridge Portrait
James Duddridge
This question was answered on 13th October 2020

The UK Government provides extensive support for countries to cope with the effects of climate change, reduce pollution, and improve environmental standards. Reducing emissions and increasing the uptake of clean energy generation directly contributes to tackling air pollution. Since 2011, our International Climate Finance has avoided 31 million tonnes of emissions and installed 2,000 megawatts of clean energy. In the last 5 years the UK has spent £2.9 billion on climate change mitigation in many low- and middle-income countries. We have committed to doubling the UK's International Climate Finance to £11.6 billion between 2021/22 and 2025/26. FCDO is providing support to tackle air pollution in South Asia, where the threat to public health is particularly severe. This includes the development of urban air quality improvement plans, as well as reducing pollution associated with a range of manufacturing processes through the Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution programme, which also operates in East and West Africa.

The UK Government is also supporting efforts to tackle plastics pollution and waste internationally. FCDO programmes have boosted research efforts, supported Ghana, Vanuatu and Uganda in testing new approaches to plastic alternatives, and will help communities in Haiti, Pakistan and Kenya with waste collection and recycling. The joint FCDO and DEFRA £500 million Blue Planet Fund will have a direct focus on combating pollution on land and sea. The UK has also committed £250 million, of which £150m is from FCDO, between 2018 and 2022 to the Global Environment Facility, which has ocean protection and tackling plastic pollution as major themes.

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