Mums for Lungs

A screenshot of a Parliamentary written question to the Department for Transport, answered on 1st December. Helen Hayes MP asked the Secretary of State for Transport if she will take steps to ensure the recall of diesel vehicles found to use defeat devices. Simon Lightwood MP answered: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) is investigating cases of possible non-compliant diesel emissions in cars and vans. The investigations aim to ensure any non-compliance found is fixed as soon as reasonably possible, working together with manufacturers to achieve real-world impacts on air quality. Where an investigation into the emissions has identified emissions that do not meet the required standard, the MSU will work with the manufacturer to implement improvement plans and, where necessary, recall affected vehicles.

Thank you @helenhayes.bsky.social for asking this question about the recall of #Diesel vehicles fitted with defeat devices.

We're glad to have it confirmed by @simonlightwood.org.uk that the Market Surveillance Unit will recall vehicles where necessary.

www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=20...

chart shows pollution is about the same.

Have a look at how much we are using each source.
Road Transport - LOTS.
Wood Burning - Not a lot at all.

And then look at the pollution from each source.

We have over 40 million vehicles, and about 3 million wood burners.

Yet wood burning is about the same amount of pollution.

Agree - brakes and tyres produce far more fine particles than exhausts. It all needs addressing!

Why Zipcar gave up on London The car-sharing scheme was hit by rapidly increased costs, a new congestion charge, and a lack of support from councils.

“18 years without a car, I suppose we’ll need to buy an EV now and have it sat in a kerbside parking space for 98% of its life.”

A good read on Zipcar's decision to close. We hope there's a way to turn this around. #ZeroEmission #AirPollution

Not sure what we will do, but having very local access to Zipcar was a core part of our decision to sell our own car.

Breaking: @emmahardymp.bsky.social publishes Environmental Improvement Plan 2025. Simon Birkett @cleanairlondon.bsky.social commented: "It's a step in the right direction but far adrift from the EU's new legal standards for #AirQuality in 2030. We need #EllasLaw, NO2 of 20 and a pathway to WHO AQGs"

Environmental Improvement Plan sets out UK’s air quality ambitions The Government has today launched its Environmental Improvement Plan, setting out goals and commitments to improving the natural environment and outlining measures to improve air quality and the publi...

More on the revised Environmental Improvement Plan, published today.

"Government must now match this ambition with sustained investment in local authorities, and by acting on major sources of pollution, including through its consultation on wood burning." @impurbanhealth.bsky.social #CleanAir

“We are living in an area where during the winter months we are slowly being poisoned by the behaviour of our neighbours, and we were doing the same to them unwittingly until we had the information and we decided to change our behaviour.” Hazel, Winchester. Share the facts about woodburning this #CleanAirNight The quote appears in a cloud of smoke coming from an illustration of a wood burner. The Clean Air Night logo showing the date of 22 January 2026 is at the bottom.

Hazel is a Winchester local who moved into a property with a wood burner many years ago. She started using it to heat her home, but after learning about air pollution she became concerned about the impacts it might be having on her health and eventually replaced it with an electric stove.

Air pollution budgets cut by 99% as illegal levels of pollution continue for 11 million — Mums for Lungs 18th November 2025 New FOI data shows that air quality budgets have been cut to just £1.5 million a year, from a high of £225 million in 2020/21, despite nearly 11 million people living in areas with...

No action can happen without adequate funding though.

Our recent research showed that in the first year of this Government, #AirPollution funding for local authorities dropped to £1.4m from a high of £225m! We hope these EIP commitments are a first step in the right direction.

More action needed to protect children from air pollution say children’s doctors As part of their updated position statement, RCPCH is calling for stronger action from the UK government to protect children from the health harms of air pollution.

People get in touch with us daily as their homes & lungs are filled with smoke from their neighbours’ burning.

We need action to reduce unnecessary burning and, like @rcpch.bsky.social, we urge Government to phase out #WoodBurning and support a transition to cleaner heating.

The Big Choke: wood burning complaints rise 65% with barely any enforcement action — Mums for Lungs October 22nd 2025 Our latest research reveals that over 15,000 complaints about wood burning were made between September 2024 & August 2025, with barely a handful of fines issued and not a sing...

Action on #WoodBurning is long overdue. We began campaigning on this in 2020. Since then we’ve sent out 25,000+ flyers, repeatedly shone a light on the inadequate enforcement mechanism in Smoke Control Areas, and highlighted, as the goverment has not, the #AirPollution & #Health impact of burning.

We’re cautiously optimistic about this changed attitude towards our dirty air from this government.

If it is serious about protecting everyone’s health, we will also need a legal commitment to reducing NO2. Many areas have been in breach of legal limits for 15 years. #AirPollution #Dieselgate

Wood-burning stoves could face partial ban in Labour’s updated environment plan Exclusive: Pollution targets set out alongside nature recovery projects to allay concerns over housebuilding

We’ve been urging the government to commit to stronger targets for years, so we're pleased that the government has finally listened.

The devil is in the detail. #AirPollution is largely below these levels already across the country and is still making hundreds of thousands of people sick.

Thank you Zak! Good news indeed.

Christmas Cards 2025 — Mums for Lungs November 5th 2025 Our Christmas cards are back by popular demand! Join us in sending season’s greetings while also sharing simple ideas on reducing air pollution in our everyday lives.

Happy 1st December! Have you ordered your free Christmas cards yet?

We're offering our Christmas cards again this year - please join us in sending season's greetings while sharing facts and tips on how to reduce #AirPollution. You can order yours at the link.

A visualisation of lungs, showing that a wood stove can be 450 times more polluting than a gas boiler.

How much #AirPollution is created when you burn wood?

👉 Defra approved/#Ecodesign stove = 400 times more polluting than a gas boiler.
👉 Open fire = 4000 times more polluting than a gas boiler.

Please think twice about burning if you don't need to.
#WoodBurning

A flyer for a walk and talk event. Text says "Awair Walk and Talk, Sun 30th Nov. 5pm walk, 6pm talk. Come and meet the Awair Community Champions and Mums for Lungs".

Join us and AWAIR tomorrow (30th) for a free Walk & Talk exploring local #AirPollution displays in Gipsy Hill.

Meet at 5pm at the Gipsy Hill Taproom, SE27, and join our friendly chat about how pollution affects our health & daily lives.

Book your spot here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/walk-talk-...

Christmas Cards 2025 — Mums for Lungs November 5th 2025 Our Christmas cards are back by popular demand! Join us in sending season’s greetings while also sharing simple ideas on reducing air pollution in our everyday lives.

Free Christmas cards!

We're offering our Christmas cards again this year - please join us in sending season's greetings while sharing facts and tips on how to reduce #AirPollution. You can order yours at the link.

A brick fireplace that is filled with board games.

❤️ We love creative alternatives to fireplaces.❤️

Tag us in a picture of yours if you've found things to do with it other than burn stuff. We want to inspire people to find different ways to enjoy their fireplace or stove ❤️ .

Change is possible! #FireplaceFlip #AirPollution

📸: Jenny K

Why Controlled Parking Zones are good for children’s health — Mums for Lungs It can be hard to connect children’s health with Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs); how can being able to park affect how healthy our children are? Find out why, if we want healthier, calmer and safer…

Did you know that Controlled Parking Zones are good for children's #Health? Find out why in our blog.

Key takeaway: CPZs are part of how we reduce driving and its contribution to #Climate change. Let's embrace them 💚. #AirPollution

#GreaterManchester, would you like a calmer, safer, less polluted journey to school? #SchoolStreets reduce traffic and #AirPollution - win!

We're keen to hear from people in #Bury, #Oldham, #Rochdale & #Tameside who are interested. Get in touch with Liz at manchester@mumsforlungs.org if that's you!

A person on a bicycle (me!) holds up a ‘Cars Make Us Sick’ leaflet from Mums for Lungs on a busy street. The leaflet is in the foreground. In front of them, traffic is lined up with cars and vans queueing along the street. Trees and shops line the road on a bright, sunny day.

Interesting piece here about how EVs can make you feel sick - but for me it’s a reminder that the fewer car trips we all take, the better we feel. Cleaner, greener ways of getting around really do make a difference 💚
@mumsforlungs.bsky.social
inews.co.uk/inews-lifest...

Yes, apologies, looking back, we can see that several recent posts have missed this. Thank you for flagging.

Thanks to @josiah.writes.news for covering the #AirPollution funding scandal. The Conservatives provided £225 million in 2020/21, yet last year Labour allocated just £1.5m, despite saying they'd spent £575m.

We hope to see the Air Quality Fund reinstated today.

bylinetimes.com/2025/11/21/t...

Thank you Kirsten! Sounds brilliant.

Delighted to represent @mumsforlungs.bsky.social at the Healthy Air, Healthy Lives conference on Saturday. It was a really informative day - from air-quality insights to media training - and great to connect with people working for cleaner air.
Thank you to Florence and @waseemzaffar.bsky.social

A flyer for a walk and talk event. Text says "Awair Walk and Talk, Sun 30th Nov. 5pm walk, 6pm talk. Come and meet the Awair Community Champions and Mums for Lungs".

Join us and AWAIR on Sunday (30th) for a free Walk & Talk exploring local #AirPollution displays in Gipsy Hill.

Meet at 5pm at the Gipsy Hill Taproom, SE27, and join our friendly chat about how pollution affects our health & daily lives.

Book your spot here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/walk-talk-...

Christmas Cards 2025 — Mums for Lungs November 5th 2025 Our Christmas cards are back by popular demand! Join us in sending season’s greetings while also sharing simple ideas on reducing air pollution in our everyday lives.

Free Christmas cards!

We're offering our Christmas cards again this year - please join us in sending season's greetings while sharing facts and tips on how to reduce #AirPollution. You can order yours at the link.

Public do not trust car manufacturers as new Dieselgate case begins in High Court  | ClientEarth New polling shows the British public want accountability.

Do you trust car manufacturers to tell the truth about the #Health & environmental impacts of their cars?

63% of British adults don't.

Where illegal activity is shown by the #Dieselgate trial, the Government needs to enforce recalls, paid for by manufacturers. @clientearth.bsky.social

A month today, Father Christmas will be busy squeezing down chimneys.

Did you know that burning wood produces benzene, formaldehyde, arsenic, mercury (& more)?

Help us protect Father C's lungs; please don't burn if you don't need to 🙏 .

www.dsawsp.org/health/wood-...