Soaring Child Hospital Admissions to Treat Breathing Problems Amid Clean Air Zone Debate

Manchester, UK - Hospital admissions for babies, toddlers, and children in Greater Manchester suffering from breathing problems have soared by hundreds in just the past year, a crisis clean air campaigners directly attribute to the region's persistent poor air quality.

The dramatic surge in young patients comes as debate continues over Mayor Andy Burnham's decision to implement a non-charging Clean Air Zone (CAZ), a plan confirmed by the government earlier this year.

Clean air campaigners argue the rise in admissions serves as stark evidence of the health impact of illegal pollution levels plaguing the city. Parents echoed this sentiment, stating the non-charging zone "lacks ambition and won’t go nearly far enough to cut illegal levels of pollution."

However, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham defended the approach, explaining that a charging CAZ "would have trapped people paying a charge but unable to afford to change their vehicle."

Despite opting against the implementation of charging drivers with non-compliant vehicles, the mayor has once again acknowledged the severity of the air pollution issue and its impact on the health of children. In his statements he has confirmed his understanding regarding community interest organisations promoting better air quality, and how they are indeed right to raise these concerns of Greater Manchester's communities, adding, "We can't turn away from the issue."

Mr. Burnham outlined a key part of his strategy involves expanding the Bee Network with "more and more electric buses" as a crucial green public transport solution. He stressed there is "no complacency" in developing these initiatives.

Concerns about air quality are amplified by official figures. The most recent verified data from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs' (DEFRA) air quality compliance hub for 2023 identified Manchester as having the worst air pollution levels in the country.

Liz Godfrey, who runs a relevant community interest organisation benefiting mums and children, highlighted the urgent need to protect children from the harm caused by air pollution, pointing out that several hundred thousand diesel cars remain on Greater Manchester's roads.

Adding another dimension to the pollution challenge, our local publication The Rochdale Valiant is sternly suggesting that local authorities commence an investigation into the figures for polluting vehicles to estimate how many drivers are regularly using roads without valid or legally appropriate driving licences. Our publication would like to raise concerns that significant amounts of pollution and dangerous driving are increasingly harming the public daily due to individuals driving illegally, lacking credentials, and not paying due taxes or meeting insurance requirements.

While policing teams are understood to be apprehending those who break the law by driving illegally, there is a call for a larger-scale crackdown and the implementation of preventative measures to deter illegal driving on such a widespread scale.

As hospital wards see increasing numbers of children with respiratory issues, the pressure mounts on authorities to demonstrate effective action against the illegal levels of air pollution impacting Greater Manchester.