A LOT of ill-informed nonsense has been circulating in these pages about the health effects of air pollution in many parts of our city. Let's consider the facts. In developed and developing countries, air pollution – caused by cars, factories and coal fires – is shortening lives. Globally, indoor and outdoor air pollution caused around £7 million premature deaths in 2012, according to the World Health Organisation.

In the UK air pollution causes the equivalent of 40,000 early deaths every year. It is linked to terrible health effects, including lung cancer and impaired lung development in children. In Southampton the annual death toll from these causes is well in excess of 100.

Older readers may remember the 1952 London smog disaster which claimed 12,000 lives. This proved to be the catalyst at that time for comprehensive air pollution controls in Britain which the public health community had long been crying out for, but which politicians steadfastly ignored.

Following this tragedy the UK government passed the Clean Air Act which, for the first time, regulated both domestic and industrial smoke emissions. The legislation included powers to establish smokeless zones, and provided subsidies to householders to convert to cleaner fuels (smokeless solid fuel, gas and electricity).

But this transition did not happen overnight. It took around 30 years, and another Clean Air Act in 1968 to deal with slow-moving local authorities, before smoke control programmes were finally completed.

It makes me wonder, with the city council looking to introduce a Clean Air Zone in highly polluted Southampton with the backing of the entire local health community, whether opponents of these very limited but sensible measures have learnt the lessons from history. Otherwise, I fear, they are doomed to repeat them – at the expense of more premature and avoidable death.

Councillor Dave Shields

Southampton