Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah's mother receives compensation for air pollution-related death | Air pollution

The mother of a nine-year-old girl, the first person in the UK to have air pollution recorded on her death certificate, will receive undisclosed compensation from the government to compensate for her daughter's untimely death.

To resolve a legal dispute, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department for Transport and the Department for Health and Social Care issued a statement expressing their sincere condolences to the family of Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, from south-east London. who suffered a fatal asthma attack in 2013 after being exposed to excessive air pollution.

At an inquest in 2020, a coroner ruled that exposure to air pollution “contributed significantly” to her death. Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah is committed to raising awareness of the dangers of air pollution and earlier this year took legal action against the three government agencies seeking compensation for personal injuries caused by the illness and premature death of her daughter Ella.

The statement from the ministers of the three ministries said: “On behalf of the ministries involved in the lawsuit, we take this opportunity once again to express your deep sympathy for your loss and our sincere condolences to you as Ella's mother to express. to her siblings and everyone who knew her.

“Your words have had a significant impact both in this litigation and in your public campaign.

“Little children like Ella shouldn’t have to suffer from our air. We thank you for your tireless efforts and sincerely hope that by working together in the coming years, more can be achieved not only to improve the quality of the air we breathe, but also to raise awareness of the health effects of air pollution.”

Ella's family lived about 25 meters from the busy South Circular in south London and Ella regularly walked past it on her way to and from school. Shortly before her seventh birthday, she developed asthma and was hospitalized 27 times over the next two years after repeated attacks. A few weeks after her ninth birthday, she suffered a fatal asthma attack.

Medical staff had not identified air pollution as a possible cause of her poor health before her death. Her mother later said that moving “would have been the first thing” the family would have done had they known the risks air pollution posed to Ella.

Adoo-Kissi-Debrah was due to meet Defra minister Emma Hardy on Thursday and wanted to tell her she would continue to push for tougher air pollution laws, with the aim of passing Ella's Law, which would force the government to set a target to reduce PM2.5 particulate matter pollution to 10 micrograms per cubic meter by 2030, ten years earlier than the current commitment.

She said she would tell the minister that the government needed to take urgent action to improve air quality. “I have been fighting for justice for Ella for over 14 years. Firstly, to find out what caused her to become so seriously ill and secondly, to raise awareness about the dangers of air pollution.

“Nothing will ever replace the pain and suffering Ella has endured or the trauma of losing a beloved daughter and sister at such a young age. The loss to our family is immeasurable,” said Adoo-Kissi-Debrah.

“I believe that every child has the right to breathe clean air, regardless of where they live, their ethnic background or their economic status. Ella’s story was a force for change and I will continue to use her legacy to hold authorities accountable.”

The family's lawyer, Susie Labinjoh of Hodge Jones & Allen, said: “This has been a long and hard battle for Rosamund. The agreement reflects her sheer determination to receive recognition for her daughter’s pain and suffering from those responsible for combating air pollution.”

In legal documents at the start of the trial, the government's legal department said that Adoo-Kissi-Debrah's lawyers had estimated the value of the suit at £293,156, but the government estimated that if successful the suit would be worth a maximum of £30,000 could be.