Air pollution across the United Kingdom is responsible for more than 500 deaths every week and is costing the country over £500 million weekly in healthcare, lost productivity, and economic damage, according to a new report from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP).
The study reveals that 99% of the population is exposed to harmful levels of toxic air, with pollutants now linked to a wide range of serious health issues.
These include cancer, heart disease, stroke, mental health disorders, dementia, and even impaired foetal development. The long-term effects of dirty air are now being recognised as more damaging than previously understood.
The RCP report highlights that air pollution contributes to an estimated 30,000 deaths annually in the UK, with the financial burden reaching £27 billion. When broader impacts such as dementia are considered, the true cost may be as high as £50 billion each year.
Exposure to polluted air has been shown to reduce life expectancy by up to 1.8 years, placing it among the leading contributors to early death worldwide—just behind cancer and smoking.
The RCP has called on the UK government to prioritise air pollution as a major public health crisis. Despite improvements over recent decades, air pollution remains the country’s most significant environmental threat to human health, affecting people at all stages of life.
Medical professionals are now urging policymakers to treat clean air as a fundamental public health requirement, similar to safe drinking water and food hygiene. They emphasise that most of the deaths caused by air pollution are preventable and that urgent action is needed to protect public health and reduce the financial strain on the NHS.
Alongside the RCP’s findings, a report by Asthma and Lung UK found that one in five individuals with lung conditions had experienced serious flare-ups or life-threatening asthma attacks due to poor air quality. The charity has labelled air pollution a national health emergency and criticised the government for failing to act decisively.
Campaigners, including healthcare workers and patients, are planning to deliver a letter to Downing Street, urging ministers to introduce stricter air quality legislation and ambitious targets to reduce emissions.
In July, a cross-party group of MPs will reintroduce a bill known as Ella’s Law. Named after nine-year-old Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, who died in 2013 following an asthma attack linked to air pollution, the bill aims to enshrine the right to clean air into UK law. Ella became the first person in the UK to have air pollution officially recognised as a cause of death following a landmark inquest in 2020.
The UK government maintains that it is committed to improving air quality and has allocated £575 million to help local authorities implement cleaner air initiatives. Officials have also confirmed the development of further measures aimed at reducing emissions and lowering overall exposure to air pollution.
As evidence grows of the deep impact air pollution has on human health, doctors and environmental groups continue to press for bold national action to prevent further avoidable deaths and secure a healthier future for all.
