Fighting for clean air at the elections

Last week, communities across England voted for their new Metro Mayors. Here in the Clean Air team at Asthma + Lung UK, we’ve been busy making sure that mayoral candidates understood the need to protect everyone’s lungs from toxic air. Read on to hear what we’ve been doing across the UK to keep the pressure on for clean air in our communities.

Protecting little lungs in the West Midlands

Children are more vulnerable to the impacts of air pollution. Across the West Midlands, young people are breathing in toxic air that is putting their health and wellbeing at risk.

That’s why we invited Birmingham schools to question their mayoral candidates on how they’d protect their lungs from toxic air.

Children and teachers gathered in Birmingham’s Council Chamber to hear from candidates, alongside local councillors, about their plans to tackle air pollution at school gates across the region.

The children wrote postcards to all candidates calling on them to make clean air a priority and quizzed the politicians on issues such as making riding a bike and walking to school safer. Some schools also brought data from their very own air quality monitors to highlight the problem they are seeing right outside their school gates.

Now the region has a newly elected Mayor in Labour’s Richard Parker. We’ll be calling on Mayor Parker to make a commitment to making the air in the West Midlands safer to breathe for our children.

Cleaner and greener transport for Greater Manchester

**Maddy from our clean air team with Mayor Andy Burnham**

Greater Manchester has some of the worst air quality in the whole of the UK, and road traffic is a leading contributor to this public health crisis. In partnership with the Clean Cities Campaign and Urban Mobility Partnership, we hosted a hustings where we quizzed mayoral candidates on how they’d make the region’s transport system less polluting.

Candidates across parties showed their support for getting people out of cars and onto less polluting modes of transport and for measures to protect children from air pollution. Andy Burnham laid out his vision for a zero-emission public transport system with cheaper fares.

In the audience was Nik, who has bronchiectasis. Nik asked whether any of the candidates would be willing to introduce a Clean Air Zone (CAZ). While responses from candidates were mixed, Andy Burnham stated he would consider introducing charges on Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) if elected. This would go some way to addressing some of the worst polluting vehicles driving through the region.

Overall, a positive debate was had with constructive ideas discussed. With Andy Burnham now starting a fresh term as Mayor, we’ll be calling on him to prioritise tackling Greater Manchester’s toxic air crisis without delay.

Making clean air a political priority in West Yorkshire

In April, we hosted a roundtable discussion in Leeds, bringing together mayoral candidates and their representatives to hear how they would address air pollution in West Yorkshire.

At the event we heard from local residents Kashif and Sarah about how air pollution impacts their lives and lives of their families West Yorkshire, a number of whom live with a lung condition. Alison Lowe, Deputy Mayor, representing Tracy Brabin, discussed plans to address air pollution, including initiatives for better and more affordable public transport, increased cycling infrastructure, and commitments to achieve net-zero emissions by 2038.

This event was an opportunity for local healthcare professionals and residents to challenge candidates on their plans for creating better and more accessible transport across West Yorkshire. It served as a platform for diverse voices to be heard, fostering community collaboration toward a cleaner, healthier future in the region.

Now, it’s time for the mayor to deliver. We’ll call on Mayor Tracy Brabin to prioritize tackling air pollution in West Yorkshire during her second term.

Taking the pollution out of London’s transport

On April 17, we supported Clean Cities Campaign and Possible London to host an electoral hustings to hold candidates to account on plans for the future of London’s transport system. Candidates and representatives came together to discuss key issues the next Mayor will face in the next five years including air pollution, road safety, and making public transport more accessible and cheaper for all.

A survey we ran last year showed that 81% of Londoners are worried about the impact of air pollution on their children’s health, compared with an average of 48% in the rest of the country.

Candidates collectively agreed on the importance of public transport. The room was generally supportive of bold policies to tackle air pollution like the Ultra Low Emission Zone but agreed action was needed to financially support Londoners.

We want the Mayor of London to commit to further action on clean air as air pollution remains a threat to public health with many roads still exceeding World Health Organization guidelines and legal limits in London.

What happens next?

Now that the elections are over, it’s down to the elected Mayors to follow through on their promises to tackle toxic air. We’ll be continuing to push for more ambitious solutions that will protect the health of communities most impacted by this public health crisis.

If you live in a region with a newly elected Mayor, why not write to them and put clean air on their radar from day one? For top tips on how to engage with your representatives, you can reach out to us at campaigns@asthmaandlung.org.uk where we’ll be happy to help.