Mayor convenes Government & health leaders for Clean Air Summit

• Professor Chris Whitty, Minister Jo Churchill and Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah among the speakers at the Mayor’s Clean Air and Health Summit
• Mayor will call on health professionals to play a greater role in informing patients about risks of air pollution and how to protect themselves as recommended in the Coroner’s report following the inquest into the death of nine year old Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah
• Air quality guides for every borough with new local data showing pollution levels and impact on residents’ health.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, will today tell a summit of government and health leaders that we are facing a pivotal moment in our efforts to tackle the triple dangers of toxic air pollution, climate change and congestion to the health of Londoners and wider society, as well as the city’s economy.

Sadiq is convening leaders from national and local government, health experts and campaigners, including Professor Chris Whitty, Defra Minister Jo Churchill and Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah to agree the next steps in taking action to raise awareness of air pollution and health.

Nine year old Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, who died in 2013 following an asthma attack, became the first person in the UK to have air pollution listed as a cause of death. Following the inquest, the Coroner set out areas of concern which will be tackled at today’s summit.

The Coroner’s report from last spring highlighted the urgent need for ambition and further action to reduce pollution. In particular, it set out the need for all levels of government, the NHS and health and care professionals to do more to raise awareness of its serious health effects.

The summit will focus on improved ways of ensuring the public is aware of the health impacts of air pollution, including through the provision of more targeted ‘air quality alerts’ on the most polluted days. The scale of the challenge requires collaboration across national, regional and local government, the NHS and wider health system, as well as with non-governmental groups such as academia, campaigners and international bodies. The summit is bringing together all the key partners for the first time.

Attendees are expected to discuss:

• a complete review of the messaging and distribution of existing alerts systems
• developing guidance for medical professionals to help them raise air pollution with their patients
• steps the NHS and wider health system can take to raise awareness of pollution with Londoners

City Hall has also today published updated Air Quality Guides for Public Health Professionals to be shared with local officials in every London borough. These will contain borough-specific information on air pollution levels, including around priority sites such as schools, hospitals and care homes, as well as data on the health impacts of air pollution both generally and in each borough.

These resources will help boroughs target action to improve the health and wellbeing of the local community and reduce the health inequalities caused by exposure to air pollution.

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “We are facing a pivotal moment in our efforts to tackle the triple dangers of toxic air pollution, climate change and congestion and make London a green, fairer and safer city. Tackling air pollution has been a priority for me since I was first elected in 2016 and I’m more determined than ever to do everything I can to consign toxic air to the history books.

“However, the inquest into Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah’s death has underlined the need for us all to do much more to warn Londoners about the effects of air pollution. I’m delighted to be convening national and regional leaders and medical professionals to agree how we can best do this and ensure further action is taken to make sure no other child dies from London’s toxic air.

“We simply don’t have time to waste – deadly air pollution is permanently damaging the lungs of young Londoners and affecting older people who are more vulnerable to the impacts of poor air quality. This is also about social justice – we know pollution hits the poorest Londoners, who are least likely to own a car, the hardest, which is why I’m doing everything I can to improve air quality and protect the health of all Londoners.”

The Mayor has made tackling air pollution a priority, leading to a substantial reduction in the number of Londoners living in areas exceeding legal limits for nitrogen dioxide since 2016. However, recent analysis from City Hall shows that despite these improvements, every hospital, medical centre and care home in the capital – visited by many of the most vulnerable Londoners at their most unwell – is in a location which breaches the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines for nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter.

Whilst all Londoners are impacted, we know that inequalities in exposure to pollution further exacerbate wider health inequalities. Research shows that those exposed to the worst air pollution are more likely to be deprived Londoners and those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. Given the urgency of the climate crisis and the damaging impact of toxic air pollution, the Mayor believes bold action must be taken now. That’s why the Mayor recently announced that he is considering a number of further policies that could be ready within the next few years to encourage Londoners and those who drive within London to shift from polluting cars to electric vehicles, public transport and sustainable active travel, such as walking and cycling.

Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, BreatheLife Ambassador and Founder of the Ella Roberta Family Foundation said: "This week was the ninth anniversary of my daughter's passing. The Coroner's inquest showed without a doubt that air pollution from the traffic near our home contributed to Ella's severe asthma, and that without it Ella would still be alive today. The Coroner set out clear recommendations on how the UK's national and local governments and health professionals can prevent future deaths like Ella's. In London, 8 to 12 children die from asthma every year. That is unacceptable, and it's time we act to save their lives."

Professor Sir Stephen T Holgate, MRC Clinical Professor at Southampton, UKRI Clean Air Champion and Special Advisor to the RCP on Air Quality, said: “The inquest brought into sharp focus the key fact that air pollution was and remains a real risk to life, especially harming the young and old as well as those with pre-existing diseases. Medical professionals have a vital role to play in raising awareness of the serious health impacts of air pollution and the need for urgent action to tackle its sources. I’m pleased to be chairing today’s summit and am sure it will help drive further collective action to address the concerns raised by the Coroner.”

Dr Vin Diwakar, Regional Medical Director & CCIO at NHS England, said: “Poor air quality is the largest environmental risk to public health in London and in the UK as a whole. Long-term exposure to air pollution can cause chronic conditions such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases as well as lung cancer, leading to reduced life expectancy. In particular, the most vulnerable face all these disadvantages; the poorest Londoner’s often have the highest levels of exposure, while wealthier households on average contribute more to producing it.

“Tackling this crucial issue is essential to making London a healthier place to live for everyone – and it can only be done by institutions like the NHS and City Hall working together and changing how we all live and work. The NHS has pledged to become Net Zero by 2045 and some of the measures we will be putting in place to address our contribution to the problem include reducing waste gases and preventing the atmospheric release of medical gases by all trusts; making sure that NHS trusts only buy renewable energy and building a zero or ultra-low emission vehicle fleet across the service.”

Professor Kevin Fenton, London Regional Director for Public Health, Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, said: “Improving air quality is a public health priority for London as it is crucial to reducing the health impacts and disparities seen across communities in our city. Air pollution can be harmful to everyone but some people are more affected because they are exposed to higher levels of air pollution in their day-to-day lives, they live in a polluted area, or are more vulnerable to the harm caused by air pollution such as children, the elderly and people with heart disease or respiratory conditions such as asthma. Addressing and reducing air pollution will help people live longer, healthier lives.”

Larissa Lockwood, Director of Clean Air, Global Action Plan, said: “For years, Global Action Plan has been working on pilot projects with health professionals to enable them to have conversations with patients about how to protect their health from air pollution. But this needs to move from testing to the mainstream. We are therefore extremely hopeful that this Summit will provide a platform for those with the power to move these conversations from pilots to core practice and real action is committed to within the heath sector. However, tackling poor air quality must go beyond the boundaries of the hospital, clinic room or GP practice. The burden of responsibility to act on air pollution cannot be put on patients alone – we need an accompanying, sustained public health campaign so that collectively everyone does more to cut air pollution.”

Cllr Danny Thorpe, London Councils’ Executive Member for Health & Care, said: “Air pollution blights Londoners’ lives and represents a massive challenge for the capital. It can stunt children’s lung growth and is linked to increased risk of lung disease, heart failure and strokes. For people with a lung condition, it can seriously affect their quality of life, and leave them feeling trapped in their own homes. Across London, dirty air contributes to thousands of deaths each year.

“Tackling this major public health crisis is a top priority for the boroughs. As we look forward to London’s post-Covid recovery, we’re determined to work together on securing a cleaner, greener, and healthier future for everyone in the capital.”