Policy vs. reality: The government releases new report on air quality communications as London faces air pollution spike

In December 2021, the government launched a comprehensive review of its Air Quality Information System (AQIS) to assess how it communicates information about air quality to the public. One of the primary aims of this review was to ensure that air quality information is clear, actionable and accessible, particularly to vulnerable groups – including but not limited to pregnant women, children, older people and people with long-term health conditions – so they can better protect themselves from the harmful impacts of air pollution.

Today, over three years later, the government has published its recommendations in a detailed report, underscoring the changes needed to help people better understand how air pollution might impact them in real time. The government has a duty to communicate accurate and timely information about air pollution and its impacts. However, using the government’s Daily Air Quality Index to understand the level of risk from air pollution is currently far too difficult, putting people at risk as they navigate their daily lives.

This issue is particularly concerning as London and many parts of the South of England are currently experiencing a spike in air pollution. This week, the Daily Air Quality Index indicates that parts of London will experience air pollution levels ranging from ‘moderate’ to, very occasionally, ‘high’. Behind these mostly ‘moderate’ warnings, which advise the general population to ‘enjoy usual outdoor activities’, are dangerously high levels of air pollution[1].

Despite the fact that Londoners are breathing toxic air at concentrations greatly exceeding the World Health Organization’s limits for human health, the government has not issued any air pollution alerts, as the threshold for these alerts will not be reached. As such, we believe that the current thresholds for issuing an alert are inadequate to inform people of the real risks posed by pollution levels.

Healthy Air Coalition member, Asthma + Lung UK, which sat on the steering group for the AQIS review, has repeatedly warned that the current thresholds for air pollution alerts are outdated and ill fit to protect public health[2]. Descriptions of largely ‘low’ levels of air pollution, paired with misleading green heat maps, will be commonly understood to indicate a low threat to health from air pollution, giving the public a false sense of safety. Only ‘high’ levels of air pollution and red colours would communicate the dangers to health from the amount of air pollution seen in London this week.

Image: Screenshot of UK-Air Pollution forecast map for Saturday 09 March 2025. Accessible here.

We believe the Daily Air Quality Index must be changed to reflect the reality of air quality in the UK and to align with health-based guidelines. The World Health Organization has found that there is no safe level of air pollution, reinforcing the urgency of providing the public with accurate and comprehensible air quality information. If the government’s index remains outdated, millions will continue to be in the dark about the harmful effects of an invisible yet deadly public health threat.

National air quality indices run by our European neighbours do a better job of communicating harmful levels of air pollution. In the Netherlands and France this week, similar levels of air pollution are reported as ‘high’ and ‘harmful’, with country heatmaps prominently displaying affected areas in red. This empowers the general public to make informed decisions about their health.

As the government considers its next steps, the need to bring the Daily Air Quality Index in line with the latest evidence on health is loud and clear.

In response to the publication of the review, Jonathan Blades, Head of Policy at Asthma + Lung UK said:

“This review – which the charity was involved in – is a step in the right direction and we look forward to working with the government to implement the recommendations as a matter of urgency.

“Better air quality information will benefit us all, especially the millions of people who currently live with a lung condition in the UK, as it means people can make more informed decisions about their emissions and exposure. There is much more to do to raise public awareness about air pollution, including updating the Daily Air Quality Index thresholds to bring them in line with international health guidelines.

“We hope to build on this positive dialogue with the government to make clean air a real legacy for generations to come.”

The Healthy Air Coalition is urging the government to act on the findings of this review and update air quality information to reflect the reality that many are experiencing across much of the UK. Failure to provide clear and accurate air pollution warnings is needlessly endangering millions of lives, particularly those of individuals with health conditions, pregnant women, young and older people, who are most vulnerable to the health impacts of polluted air.

Next steps for the government:

Following the AQIS review report, the Healthy Air Coalition urges the government to use its learnings to:

Get in touch: If you would like to learn more about the work the Healthy Air Coalition does and how you can get involved. Please contact us: info@healthyair.org.uk

[1] Daily Air Quality Index – Defra, UK

[2] asthmaandlung.org.uk/sites/default/files/Alerting the Nation Report_v4.pdf