Dr. Ola Nordrum:

I thank the Senator for his comments. I come at this from a medical and scientific point of view, so I am trying to relay the science at this meeting. Globally, the most important risk factor for death is hypertension, that is, high blood pressure. The second most important is air pollution. It is even ahead of smoking, and we can all agree that the ban on advertising cigarettes has been very successful. The data presented to me as a doctor is that air pollution is the second greatest risk factor for death globally at 8.1 million deaths per year. In Ireland, that figure is approximately 1,600. Those are just the deaths, though. If we include related diseases and other comorbidities, the number multiplies almost endlessly.

I appreciate the Senator’s comments about it being an extreme proposition, but it is what I see from the science. From the point of view of a medical opinion-----