Another reason for an election?
"Today has the only significant diary item that looked problematic once Theresa May had secured the June 8 election date last week. Yes, Monday 24 April was always the deadline set by the courts for the Government to produce an air quality action plan to cut illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide in the UK’s most polluted areas.
But in a classic move to bury the bad news, or at least delay it, ministers lodged papers on Friday night at 6.30pm, after the courts had closed. They argue for a postponement in the court action “to comply with pre-election propriety rules”. And even if the courts today reject that, Defra looks like it will appeal anyway to get the delay. Ministers don’t just want to err on the side of caution, they’re really saying ‘er, let’s just delay to the other side of the election’. Andrea Leadsom is certain to either make a Commons statement or face an Urgent Question.
But this isn’t some metrosexual hobby horse. Legal limits have been breached in 16 areas including London, Birmingham, Leeds, and Glasgow, with fears that children are breathing damaging fumes by the roadside as they walk to school. Lawyers for Sadiq Khan and Client Earth will challenge strongly. The Times has a neat line: Cabinet office guidelines allow for purdah rules to be lifted where public health is at risk."
From huffpost.