Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this really important issue. The report issued by the EPA in recent days highlights how much work we all need to do to improve air quality. As he rightly pointed out, air quality has a direct impact on health, particularly for those with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD. It is linked to higher mortality. This is a life-and-death health issue. A lot of progress is being made on the new clean air strategy. It will involve increased investment in air monitoring stations. What we do not measure we cannot improve. We need to improve measurement in this regard.

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