Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many deaths were caused by Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in affected areas in England during the air pollution episode in April 2019; and what comparative assessment he has made of the figures for that period with (a) expected average and (b) average over the last five years.

According to the Daily Air Quality Index (DAQI) there were ‘moderate’ to ‘very high’ levels of air pollution in some areas of the United Kingdom between 7 and 8 April and between 15 to 25 April 2019. The figures for deaths caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in this period are not available in the requested format and a comparative assessment has not been made.

In January 2019 the Government launched the Clean Air Strategy, which sets out plans for dealing with all sources of air pollution to save lives, protect nature and boost the economy.