Air quality could be killing 500 a year in Gloucestershire (Cheltenham Liberal Democrats)

Cheltenham Liberal Democrats <info@cheltlibdems.org.uk>

Air quality could be killing 500 a year in Gloucestershire

February 9, 2010 10:00 PM

UP TO 500 people a year could be dying in Gloucestershire because of air pollution, if national statistics uncovered today by Cheltenham MP Martin Horwood hold true for the county. The figure for Cheltenham alone could be in excess of 100 deaths a year from heart, lung and other diseases, while the national total could be as high as 50,000 a year - more than twice the previous estimate.

The shocking numbers for the UK as a whole were provided by Professor Frank Kelly of King's College London in evidence to the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) this morning. He spoke in reply to a series of questions by Martin about government statistics on deaths from air pollution. The EAC is currently conducting an inquiry into air quality. The widely-quoted figure for premature deaths from poor air quality is 23,000 a year but Professor Kelly explained that this total used outdated methods. In particular it didn't take into account the long-term effects of pollutants like the tiny particles emitted by motor vehicles. Professor Kelly said that when long-term impacts are included the figure could rise to 35,000 or even as high as 50,000. Once London, the hardest hit area, is excluded this could still mean up to 500 premature deaths a year for a county the size of Gloucestershire and more than 100 a year each for the urban areas of Cheltenham and Gloucester.

"The evidence I was given is truly shocking" said Martin. "These numbers represent a worst case scenario for premature deaths but they are much higher than the government figures even told us were possible. I hesitate to use the phrase 'cover up' but it is very clear that, at best, the government have been unforgivably slow to adopt the latest methods for calculating the health impact of air pollution and complacent in their response."

"The main cause is transport. Luckily the very policies we've been calling for to combat climate change - such as a shift to electric cars and more public transport - will be exactly the ones we need to reduce air pollution too. As the county council prepares its new transport policy, it really needs to take these startling new numbers into account. It's time they committed to back schemes like the ultra-light-rail tram plan that many people are now supporting and started thinking more about charging points for electric cars. We need a bit of vision to help stop this terrible but preventable cause of death."