Key information
Request reference number: MGLA190123-7876
Date of response:
Summary of request
Your request
The Mayor’s spokesperson continuously quotes the following phrase: ‘The Mayor is proud of tackling the capital’s toxic air, which currently leads to 4,000 Londoners dying early every year’ I would like more information on these figures relating to:
- a break down of these statistics as used by the Mayors office
- the average age of people who die prematurely included in this report
- a breakdown of how many people in this figure suffered from underlying health conditions
- if people who died had an underlying health condition what this was
- evidence of how pollution contributed to an early death
- what constitutes an ‘early death’
- year on year comparisons of this from the earliest point of data collection
- evidence of pollution causing these deaths
Our response
These are the findings of the review produced by the Environmental Research Group at Imperial College London assessing the impact on health of air pollution in London.
They followed the latest methodology for calculating health burden of air pollution recommended by the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) – the national expert Committee advising Government on the health effects of air pollution. Their recommendations for quantification are usually used in Government’s cost-benefit analysis of policies to reduce air pollution. This is also the standard methodological approach followed by Government and other cities in the UK such as Birmingham and Bristol for the assessment of mortality attributable to air pollution.
The detailed methodology and findings are set out in the report, which is available on the GLA website: Health burden of air pollution in London | London City Hall