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 improve air quality on streets near schools.

Since 2011 we have committed over £2 billion to increase the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles, green transport initiatives and supporting Local Authorities to take action. The UK air quality plan for reducing nitrogen dioxide emissions, published on 17 December last year, sets out a comprehensive approach that will reduce health impacts and meet our environmental and legal obligations.

Local Authorities are responsible for reviewing and assessing air quality under the Local Air Quality Management system. There are many schools located in local Air Quality Management Areas and Local Authorities are responsible for mitigation of pollution in these areas. Where new schools are planned in polluted areas, Local Authorities can require an assessment of pollutant levels and measures to be included to reduce the impact of pollution levels as planning conditions.

Local Authorities are key to achieving improvements in air quality and we are taking a number of steps to support them. Defra’s Air Quality Grant Programme, the Department for Transport’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund and the Clean Vehicle Technology Fund are some of the resources available to Local Authorities to take action.