NHS figures for hospitals in England showed there were 7,244 appointments last year where medics believed poor air quality was a contributory factor to ill health. Polluted air can aggravate pre-existing respiratory problems such as asthma. But there is also evidence that long-term exposure can cause heart disease, strokes, lung cancer and respiratory disease.

Medics were asked to document whether there were other factors impacting on patients’ health, and in an increasing number of cases air pollution was logged as a contributory factor to illness. Last year’s figure of 20 a day on average was a rise of 7% on the 6,755 logged for this cause in the previous year. Ten years ago the figure was 2,550.

Separate hospital figures from the NHS showed the number of admissions of people suffering with asthma was close to 70,000 last year, with some 57,000 categorised as emergency cases. Chloe Owen, clean air policy manager at Asthma + Lung UK, said: “At a time when the Government wants to prevent poor health rather than treat sickness, taking decisive action to tackle air pollution is vital.”

She called on the Government to fund a national campaign to raise awareness of the health impacts of air pollution and how people can reduce their risks. Jenny Bates, air pollution campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said: “Poor air quality can be deadly, with the health impacts affecting some of the most vulnerable in society, including children whose lung development can be seriously impacted. 

“Greater public awareness of air pollution and how to avoid the worst effects is important, but all levels of government must do more to address the root causes of the problem, including carbon-intensive transport, woodburning and agriculture.” Dr Karen Exley, programme lead, Air Quality and Public Health at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “Despite improvements over previous decades, air pollution remains one of the largest environmental risks to public health in the UK.

“The UK Health Security Agency is already working to tackle air pollution through initiatives such as our Cleaner Air Programme and continue to support Government to deliver legally binding targets on improving air quality.’’