The UK government was today facing legal proceedings and the threat of multi-million pound fines after the European commission turned down a request for more time to meet a legally-binding limit on an the PM10 air pollutant in London.
The commission ruled that the proposals put forward to improve air quality in the Greater London Zone – the capital has among the worst air quality in Europe – did not meet the "minimum requirements" for a time extension.
The decision puts pressure on the London mayor, Boris Johnson, who has recently published draft air quality strategy. He intends to scrap or delay until 2012 two key proposals in the government's submission for improving air quality.
Greater London is now the only part of the UK to fall foul of a 2005 EU directive on levels of particulate matter (PM10) – dangerous airborne particles emitted by industry, traffic and domestic heating, Stavros Dimas, the EU environment commissioner, said.
The Department of Environment and Rural Affairs submitted an application for an extension until 2011 in late spring after Dimas began legal proceedings against the UK and nine other member states at the turn of the year.
Today, he said the air quality plan submitted by the government "did not meet the minimum requirements of the directive for a time extension".
"Air pollution has serious impacts on human health and compliance with the standards must be our utmost priority," he added.
"The 2008 EU air quality directive recognises the difficulties some member states have experienced in meeting the standards for PM10 by the initial deadline of 2005 and allows the possibility of a limited time extension.
"However, the commission expects member states to clearly demonstrate that they are doing their utmost to comply with EU standards in the shortest possible time."
The dangers caused by PM10s was highlighted in the Rogers review of local authority regulatory services, published in 2007, which said poor air quality contributed to between 12,000 and 24,000 premature deaths each year.
Government figures show that average life expectancy is reduced by up to eight months by particulates pollution.
Defra called today's decision "disappointing" and said it intended to provide further details, including Johnson's draft air quality strategy, to help convince Europe to reconsider and grant an extension until 2011.
"We are confident in London meeting the limit values by 2011," a Defra spokesman said.
"This October, the mayor published his draft air quality strategy and will increase our certainty in meeting limits across London by 2011.
"We will consider the objections raised by the commission and work closely with the mayor [and the] GLA to provide additional information to the commission as soon as practical."
The government's proposals to Dimas, submitted in May, included the congestion charge and the third phase of the Low Emission Zone (LEZ), scheduled to be introduced next year to tackle the most polluting vehicles in London.
The proposals clashed with plans put forward by Johnson, who earlier this year said he would scrap the western extension of the congestion charge.
He also announced in his draft air quality strategy, published in October, that he would delay the third phase of the LEZ until 2012 in order to give drivers more time to adjust.
Darren Johnson, a Green party London assembly member, said today's decision would put pressure on the government to overrule the mayor.
He also called on the government to help plug the £70-£90m funding gap in Johnson's current plans to reduce air pollution
"The mayor's plans are in tatters and the government's complacency has been exposed, but this would be the wrong time for them to have a fight over whether the estimated £300m fine should go on tax bills, or central London's council tax bills," he said.
'The government and mayor can still avoid the fine and protect the health of Londoners if they unite and agree a new set of radical anti-pollution measures."
But the mayor – believed to have lobbied for funding support to implement some of the air quality measures – appeared confident that his draft "comprehensive strategy" could help persuade Europe to think again.
His office said it included proposals "over and above those already underway such as schemes to encourage people to use public transport, walk and cycle, smoothing traffic schemes and the Low Emission Zone".
