The UK Government faced a setback as the High Court ruled against its climate plans.
The decision followed legal challenges by environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth and Good Law Project, citing inadequate evidence of feasibility.
On Friday, the High Court mandated the government to revise its plan.
A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: “The UK can be hugely proud of its record on climate change.
“Not only are we the first major economy to reach halfway to net zero, we have also set out more detail than any other G20 country on how we will reach our ambitious carbon budgets.
“The claims in this case were largely about process and the judgment contains no criticism of the detailed plans we have in place.
“We do not believe a court case about process represents the best way of driving progress towards our shared goal of reaching net zero.”
Friends of the Earth lawyer, Katie de Kauwe, said: “This is another embarrassing defeat for the government and its reckless and inadequate climate plans.
“We urgently need a credible and lawful new action plan that puts our climate goals back on track and ensures we all benefit from a fair transition to a sustainable future.”
Emma Dearnaley, Legal Director of Good Law Project, said: “This is yet another climate failure from this government – it’s the second time in two years that its flagship net zero strategy has been found to be unlawful by the court because of our joint legal action.”
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Article source: https://www.energylivenews.com/2024/05/03/uk-government-loses-high-court-battle-over-climate-plans/