The UK government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has confirmed its intention to apply to the European Commission for a time extension to meet legal limits on nitrogen dioxide (NO2) air pollution. The department’s draft plan shows how it intends to achieve legal compliance by 2025. However, to qualify for a time extension Defra needs to achieve compliance a decade earlier, by 1 Jan 2015.

Alan Andrews, air pollution lawyer at ClientEarth, says: "The Commission would be acting illegally if it were to grant this extension, and Defra's plan leaves the UK open to unlimited fines as a result.

"The government needs to come up with a raft of ambitious measures to tackle pollution, including NO2. They must urgently commit to a framework of low emission zones across the UK, end our reliance on diesel in favour of cleaner fuels, and commit to reducing overall volumes of road traffic."


ENDS

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