Monitoring Air Quality could save the Government £40 billion

A study published in February 2025 by the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the LSE and Columbia University has found that a UK government subsidy towards an indoor air pollution monitor could lead to savings of up to ￡40 billion. The researchers found that the “productivity increases [from increased tax revenue from higher earnings and also significant reductions in NHS healthcare spending] that go back to the Government more than offsets the upfront subsidy cost”.

The results from this study, which was a randomised control trial (RCT), demonstrates that real-time feedback to people from air pollution monitors helped reduce indoor air pollution by 17% overall and 34% during occupancy time (16:00-23:00). The mechanism for these large reductions in PM2.5 came primarily through people responding by improving home ventilation, for instance by opening a window. The researchers also found that this real-time information changed residents’ beliefs about exposure, realising it was higher than they had thought.