The state of air quality across the county of Suffolk and measures to help improve the situation are on the agenda at a air quality summit, due to take place in January.

Suffolk County Council’s Conservative leader Matthew Hicks said it was “a long-term priority for public health looking at air quality, and the summit will raise the awareness of air quality to us all.”

Both national and local speakers are set to address the meeting, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said, according to a report by the BBC.

Mr Hicks said: “All of this will feed back into the Health and Wellbeing Board, and it will help to inform us as we start rolling forward that wider piece of work.” The board is made up of members of the council, health service and police.

In July it pledged to improve air quality in the county and help combat the harmful effects of air pollution.

A report from the board in the summer, said: “Air pollution causes diseases of the heart and lungs, contributes to poor public health, shortens life and is recognised as a contributing factor in the onset of heart disease and cancer.”

It continued: “However, there is limited knowledge across the population of its harmful effects and measures that can be taken individually and across sectors to improve air quality.

“Therefore, it is not only important to improve air quality overall, but also to improve population knowledge and data knowledge on the scale of the problem and the various measures that can be put in place to support the improvement of air quality across Suffolk.”