London smog forces British PM Cameron to skip jog

London: The thick blanket of smog caused by dust from Africa`s Sahara desert that is engulfing the city of London today even forced British Prime Minister David Cameron to cancel his daily morning jog.

Saharan dust has caused high levels of air pollution in the British capital, which was left gasping for fresh air for the second day. Cameron, who runs every day as part of his morning routine, told BBC, " didn`t go for my morning run this morning. I chose to do some work instead. It is unpleasant, and you can feel it in the air. The advice I would give to people is listen very carefully to what the Met Office is saying about the weather". Some schools in London have banned pupils from outdoor playgrounds to reduce their exposure to the polluted air. London Ambulance Service reported a 14 per cent rise yesterday in 999 calls related to breathing difficulties. The smog-like conditions, which are expected to clear tomorrow, are caused by a mixture of local and continental pollution, and dust from the Sahara Health warnings have been issued for people with lung and heart conditions. The UK`s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has a 10-point scale for measuring air quality with level one implying a "low" risk of air pollution and 10 for "very high" levels. Levels in eastern England had reached level nine, meaning high, this morning.