London schools will be alerted whenever the city’s air pollution reaches levels that pose an acute risk to public health from next week, as part of new efforts to emphasise the extent of the problem in the capital. The government has been under pressure for months over its handling of London’s air, with a series of damning reports by MPs and peers pointing out how it had failed to tackle the problem. Train stations and bus stops already receive alerts, and the system is to be extended to doctors’ surgeries and care homes “in the near future”.
London schools will be alerted whenever the city’s air pollution reaches levels that pose an acute risk to public health from next week, as part of new efforts to emphasise the extent of the problem in the capital. Of the UK’s annual 40,000-50,000 premature deaths from air pollution, over 9,000 are in London, with young people particularly vulnerable. Train stations and bus stops already receive alerts, and the system is to be extended to doctors’ surgeries and care homes “in the near future”.