Tony Lloyd, MP for Rochdale, has joined forces with Greater Manchester Labour MPs to demand action to tackle the unacceptable levels of air pollution in Greater Manchester.
“Nitrogen dioxide is one of a raft of air pollutants considered ‘silent killers’, linked to 1,200 deaths a year in Greater Manchester through illnesses such as asthma, heart disease, stroke and lung cancer.
“Nearby homes, playgrounds, and businesses on roads such as St Mary’s Gate, Spotland Road, and Whitworth Road are some of several Rochdale roads suffer the effects of higher pollution.”
(Tony Lloyd)
Rochdale Council has been working together with other Greater Manchester councils to produce the Greater Manchester Clean Air Plan with the intention of reducing vehicle emissions within our communities, but the Government’s two-tier approach to the mandating of Clean Air plans and charges means that residents living close to road networks managed by Highways England are at greater risk.
Writing to the Environment Secretary, George Eustice MP, Labour’s Greater Manchester MPs are demanding “that Highways England develop and execute a Clean Air Plan for its highway network to reduce nitrogen dioxide levels throughout Greater Manchester by 2023.
“There is no time to waste in combating this silent killer that blights our communities.”
