Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what amount her Department expects to pay in penalties and disallowances required by the EU Commission in relation to air pollution in 2016-17; and what contingency has been made for that purpose in her Department’s budget.

Rory Stewart

The Department does not expect to pay any penalties and disallowances imposed by the EU Commission in relation to air pollution in 2016-2017.

The Commission has started infraction proceedings against the UK for not achieving European limit values for NO₂. We want to work in partnership with Local Authorities and the Commission to improve air quality and avoid any prospect of fines levied from infraction. In December 2015, the Government published air quality plans setting out a comprehensive approach for meeting EU legal limits in the shortest possible time through a new programme of Clean Air Zones, alongside national action and continued investment in clean technologies. The UK has never had to pay an infraction fine.