Burnham should use ULEZ as inspiration for bold national clean air policy
4 min read
Seventy years on from the Clean Air Act, the incoming PM must put cleaner air at the heart of plans for economic growth.
It has been seven decades since Parliament passed the Clean Air Act in response to one of the worst public health crises in modern British history – the Great Smog. Since then, the legislation has saved thousands of lives.
But despite major progress on cleaning our air, today air pollution remains the largest environmental risk to public health in the UK. As well as damaging almost every organ in our body, poor air quality hits our economy hard, putting strain on health services and reducing productivity. That’s why, with Andy Burnham looking for bold ways to secure growth, cleaning our air must be a major part of the answer.
Action to secure cleaner air delivers profound benefits, and the UK has already taken the lead in some areas.
Witness the success of London’s ultra-low emissions zone (ULEZ), the world’s largest clean air zone. Recent research shows that between 2019 – when ULEZ was introduced – and 2024, estimated deaths associated with air pollution in London reduced by around 40 per cent.
Transformative policies like this can face opposition when first proposed, but public health outcomes are hard to argue with. Clean Air Zones in Bradford, Bristol, Birmingham and Sheffield have also shown their impact, with restricted-traffic zones leading to a reduction in cardiovascular disease and strokes.
Proven and affordable solutions to air pollution exist, but we need the political will to implement them. Clean air is beneficial for health and the environment, but is also good for economic development, too.
New research from CBI Economics finds that if the UK sees through its planned net zero policies, we will benefit hugely from cleaner air. We can secure a £7.7bn boost to our economy by 2050 through productivity gains as a result of improved health, reduced absences and longer working lives. Between 2011 and 2022, improvements in air quality accounted for around a third of labour productivity growth across the EU, according to OECD estimates.
In the UK, the CBI Economics report shows 38m additional working days could be returned to our economy by 2050. We would avoid 264,000 premature deaths and almost 500,000 hospital admissions. With an A&E admission costing between £114 – £563, this would mean major NHS savings.
Yet despite these enormous opportunities, the UK risks falling behind. We have far less ambitious air quality targets than the EU, and the UK isn’t in line with air quality guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO). There are worrying signs that progress could be slowed further. Recent talk of the government weakening the UK’s 2030 electric vehicle sales targets would undermine one of the most important drivers of cleaner air and threaten the multiple benefits that stronger action could unlock.
As Burnham prepares to become PM, he has the opportunity to build on the leadership shown by some of our cities on clean air measures. What better way to signal that change in direction than introducing a new Clean Air Act with stronger legal limits for major pollutants, a commitment to accelerate the transition to zero emission vehicles, and clean heating for many more buildings.
With England having just sweltered through its hottest June on record, the importance of staying on track with the UK’s climate plans – a huge part of which means cleaner air for everyone – couldn’t be felt more acutely. Europe’s recent heatwaves triggered widespread ozone pollution episodes, with hundreds of monitoring stations exceeding the WHO's ozone guideline. Indeed, heatwaves create a dangerous feedback loop; hotter temperatures produce more ozone, and ozone itself contributes to climate warming.
Burnham faces a huge array of pressures, but cleaning our air will enable him to address multiple interconnected areas. Given the economic, health, productivity and climate gains on offer, the case for action could not be simpler and clearer.
Jane Burston OBE is the CEO of Clean Air Fund
