As the Supreme Court judgement unanimously orders the government to submit new air quality plans to the European Commission no later than 31st of December in response to the case taken against DEFRA by ClientEarth, lets not forget what the Mayor’s role in all of this as well.
For years Boris Johnson has shied away from tackling this silent killer. Today’s judgement should finally spark meaningful action to clamp down on the dangerous pollutants being pumped into the air.
In paragraph 30 of the judgement it states that despite promising to make London one of the world’s greenest cities, under Boris Johnson London’s air quality has got worse not better and thus early compliance has been made worse. It’s time to change direction and get a grip on the capital’s air pollution crisis.
As a start we need to see an ambitious and detailed plan to get the capital’s air quality under control. That means expanding the Mayor’s proposed Ultra-Low Emission Zone in London and using is as a basis for similar schemes in other areas of the country as Labour has proposed.