Historic High Court ruling finds UK government’s climate strategy ‘unlawful’

In a landmark victory for climate justice that comes as the UK faces its hottest day on record, the High Court has ruled that the government’s Net Zero Strategy breaches the Climate Change Act.

 

The three legal challenges brought by Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth, Good Law Project and environmental campaigner Jo Wheatley, were heard together at the Royal Courts of Justice in June.

 

In a judgment published today – amid the Met Office’s first ever red alert for extreme heat – Mr Justice Holgate finds that the Net Zero Strategy, which sets out plans to decarbonise the economy, doesn’t meet the government’s obligations under the Climate Change Act to produce detailed climate policies that show how the UK’s legally-binding carbon budgets will be met. 

 

It also finds that parliament and the public were effectively kept in the dark about a shortfall in meeting a key target to cut emissions.

 

The ruling states that Greg Hands, the minister for business, energy and industrial strategy, who was responsible for signing off the Net Zero Strategy, didn’t have the legally required information on how carbon budgets would be met. However, he nevertheless approved the strategy.

 

Now that it’s been found unlawful, the government will have to update its climate strategy to include a quantified account of how its policies will achieve climate targets, based on a realistic assessment of what it actually expects them to deliver. The updated strategy will have to be presented to parliament for scrutiny by MPs.

 

The refreshed plan should include sound policies that stand up to the scrutiny of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), which recently found that credible plans exist for just two fifths of the government’s required emissions reductions. The judgment strengthens the critical expert role of the committee by stating that their advice must be given “considerable weight”.

 

During the court proceedings, it emerged that behind-the-scenes calculations by civil servants to quantify the impact of emissions cuts from policies in the government’s Net Zero Strategy did not add up to the reductions necessary to meet the sixth carbon budget – the volume of greenhouse gases the UK can emit during the period 2033-37.

 

This 5% shortfall over the sixth carbon budget is significant in climate terms and totals around 75 million tonnes of CO₂e – equivalent to almost the total annual emissions from all car travel in the UK*. It’s also possible that a realistic estimate of the shortfall would be much greater than 5%, given concerns raised at the hearing about the robustness of the methodology used for the calculation. 

 

These figures were not shared with parliament, or made available for public scrutiny. The judgment stresses the importance of government transparency and the essential role of parliamentary accountability in efforts to tackle the climate crisis.

 

Friends of the Earth lawyer Katie de Kauwe said:

 

“We’re proud to have worked on this historic case. Taking strong action to cut carbon emissions is a win-win. Not only is it essential to preventing climate breakdown, but we can also tackle the cost of living crisis with cheap, renewable energy.

 

“This landmark ruling is a huge victory for climate justice and government transparency. It shows that the Climate Change Act is a piece of legislation which has teeth, and can, if necessary, be enforced through our court system if the government does not comply with its legal duties. 

 

“More than a decade ago, Friends of the Earth spearheaded the grassroots campaign that led to this vital piece of legislation. Today, we have strengthened its enforcement, which is so crucial to our country’s ability to tackle the climate crisis.”

 

Sam Hunter Jones, senior lawyer at ClientEarth, said: 

 

“This decision is a breakthrough moment in the fight against climate delay and inaction. It forces the Government to put in place climate plans that will actually address the crisis.

 

“The court has emphasised that the risks to delivery of the UK’s climate targets are “all- important” – the Government must now address those risks when it prepares a revised strategy that meets the requirements of the Climate Change Act. 

 

“This is also an opportunity to move further and faster away from the expensive fossil fuels that are adding to the crippling cost of living crisis people are facing.  

 

“The decision confirms that the government must show how its plans will deliver the carbon budget targets in full. 

 

“Its approach must also be realistic and based on what it actually expects its plans to achieve. And the Government must set out the emissions reductions expected from its individual policies so that the public and parliament can properly hold it to account. This is a huge win for climate justice and accountability.”

 

Jolyon Maugham, Director of Good Law Project said:

 

“The illegality of its flagship climate change strategy is a huge political embarrassment to the Government. The Net Zero target must be a road map to a sustainable future - not a lie we tell our children.  

 

“We are thrilled to have worked alongside our friends at ClientEarth and Friends of the Earth to deliver this landmark victory.”

 

 

Heathrow Third Runway: Legal victory to be defended in Supreme Court

 The Friends of the Earth victory in the battle against a third runway at Heathrow Airport will be defended in the Supreme Court today.

 

Following the environmental campaigners’ triumph in the Court of Appeal earlier this year, Heathrow Airport Limited has appealed to the Supreme Court in a last-ditch bid to rescue its plan for the runway.

 

Lawyers for Friends of the Earth will argue that Court of Appeal judges were right to rule that the Government’s decision to give the runway the go-ahead in the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) was unlawful. 

 

They ruled that the Government could not ignore its international climate change commitments under the Paris Agreement, which requires the UK to sharply and quickly reduce its investment in fossil fuel infrastructure.

 

Judges said the Secretary of State for Transport (then Chris Grayling) had breached s10 of the Planning Act 2008, and acted irrationally by disregarding the Paris Agreement, the non-CO2 warming impacts of aviation, and the effects of climate change beyond 2050. He also breached his duty to undertake a lawful strategic environmental assessment in accordance with the requirements of the SEA Directive and the SEA Regulations.

 

Following the judgment, the Government and Arora Holdings decided not to pursue their legal case any further, but Heathrow Airport Limited pressed on and was granted permission to appeal to the Supreme Court.

 

Friends of the Earth is represented by Leigh Day solicitors and barristers David Wolfe QC of Matrix Chambers, Peter Lockley of 11 Kings Bench Walk Chambers and Andrew Parkinson of Landmark Chambers.

 

Will Rundle, head of legal at Friends of the Earth, said:

 

“Without the government in the picture, this case has become one about business interests versus the wellbeing of people everywhere facing the impact of the climate crisis.

“The Court of Appeal rightly ruled against the expansion of Heathrow, and we’re now here to defend our historic win for the planet. The government accepted illegal advice to ignore the Paris Climate Agreement when making the initial decision to approve the third runway. Heathrow is now trying to completely ignore this fact with its appeal.

“We are pleased that the Supreme Court will now make an authoritative ruling and remain confident the court will re-affirm that the Paris Agreement cannot be ignored, and all the damaging climate impacts of Heathrow expansion must be fully considered in any decision over expansion.”

 

Jenny Bates, climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:

 

“As we plan for a future in the wake of the dreadful Covid-19 pandemic, it’s key that the UK invests in low-carbon, resilient infrastructure and creates green jobs in sectors such as clean transport, renewable energy and home insulation. A new runway at Heathrow is the opposite of what we need to be building. It would lead to a huge increase in emissions and undermine the UK’s duty to fight the climate crisis.

 

“Heathrow has talked up easy fixes to get the Third Runway pushed through, but these fixes rely on undeveloped technology, and ineffective carbon offsetting to make their plans appear more climate friendly.”

 

Rowan Smith, solicitor in the environmental law team at Leigh Day, said:

 

“We trust that the Supreme Court will agree with the Court of Appeal when it concluded that there was absolutely no legal means by which the Government could ignore its international climate change commitments under the Paris Agreement.

 

“They made it clear that such an omission fatally undermined the lawfulness of the policy to allow a third runway at Heathrow Airport. 

 

“The Lord Justices simply followed the legal framework set by Parliament and found that the Secretary of State was legally bound to consider the Paris Agreement which was so obviously material to a decision on Heathrow Airport expansion.”

 

How Brent could do better in responding to the Climate Emergency

Brent Council has declared a Climate Emergency. Friends of the Earth have assessed the Council's efforts and suggests changes in policy and actions which would do more to avert climate catastrophe:

The Brent area’s performance on climate change is average compared to other local authority areas. All local authorities, even the best performing, need to do much more if climate catastrophe is to be averted. Brent particularly needs to do much better on increasing renewable energy, increasing tree cover, and increasing waste recycling.

In Brent 43% of emissions come from housing, 22% from transport, and 35% are industrial and commercial emissions.²

There are different estimates of how fast the UK should reduce greenhouse gas emissions if it’s to do its fair share in combatting climate change, ranging from around 7% to over 25% per year.³

Researchers at the Tyndall Centre in Manchester University say that Brent should reduce emissions by at least 13% per year.⁴

What can local authorities do?

All local authorities, even the best performing, need to do much more if climate catastrophe is to be averted. The government needs to provide them with the powers and resources to do so, and it needs to do much more itself. All local authorities should adopt an ambitious local climate action plan, and they should join with Friends of the Earth and others in urging more government action. Each local authority should declare a climate emergency as a sign of political intent.

The people most vulnerable to climate change are often those on lower incomes, despite having done the least to cause it because of their lower levels of consumption. For example, people with lower incomes are less able to replace and repair damage from flooding or insure against it. This inequality is called climate injustice.

Researchers have identified over 10,000 neighbourhoods across the UK where people are particularly vulnerable to flooding due to their location and factors such as income.⁵ Brent has 117 of these neighbourhoods with high social flood risk for surface flooding, taking account a range of vulnerability factors. The local authority needs to target these areas for support in order to help people living there prepare for extreme weather and respond and recover when it occurs.

Housing

Only 41% of homes are well insulated in Brent.⁶ This represents a shocking waste of energy, high greenhouse gas emissions and unnecessarily high energy bills. 13% of households in the area are in fuel poverty, which means they can’t afford to heat their homes properly.⁷ Poor insulation contributes to this problem.

Upgrading the insulation of 5,809 homes per year within the Brent area will ensure all homes are properly insulated by 2030, lifting as many people as possible out of fuel poverty.
We also need to switch from gas central heating, which is a major source of greenhouse gases, to eco-heating (such as heat pumps), which doesn’t burn fossil fuels. The government provides grants for installing eco-heating. There are only 15 government funded eco-heating systems in the Brent area, yet the UK needs to fit around 1 million per year. A fair share for Brent would be fitting 3,638 eco-heating systems every year.⁸

Transport

Transport is the biggest source of greenhouse gases in the UK, and emissions continue to grow. Research suggests that to deliver the greenhouse gas reductions needed will require car use to be reduced by between 20% and 60%, depending on factors such as the speed of the switch to electric vehicles.⁹ This means that the UK should more than double the proportion of journeys by public transport, cycling and walking.¹⁰

In Brent only 57% of people commute by public transport, 3% cycle, and 7% walk. In the best performing similar local authority area, the proportions are 68%, 4% and 17% respectively.¹¹
Much more is possible. Research shows that 27% of commuter journeys in Brent could be by bike (assuming good cycling infrastructure, such as segregated cycleways and the uptake of E-bikes¹²), better walking routes can encourage more journeys on foot and improve health, and 6 in 10 drivers would shift to public transport if its quality improved.¹³

Friends of the Earth suggests Brent has a target of 80% of people commuting by public transport, cycling, and walking by 2030.¹⁴

When cars are needed, they should be electric and shared as much as possible. Only 7% of commuters share their car when commuting in the Brent area.¹⁵ According to social enterprise Liftshare, best in class employers have 40% of their staff sharing journeys to work.

According to research published in April, the Brent area has 52 electric vehicle charging points (EV chargers).¹⁶ The Committee on Climate Change, which advises the government, says there should be 1 EV charger for every thousand cars by 2030. This suggests that in Brent there should be at least 92 EV chargers.¹⁷ But we need a much faster transition to electric cars, which means many more EV chargers than this.

Energy

The proportion of our electricity produced by renewable energy has increased massively over the last ten years to around a third, and the cost of solar panels and wind farms has plummeted. But we need to produce up to 8 times more renewable electricity if the UK is to wean itself off climate-wrecking oil and gas, including for our transport and heating. Much of the additional renewable energy will come from offshore wind, but there’s also a need to significantly increase onshore wind and solar power.

Currently the Brent area has 3MW of renewable power.¹⁸ If the Brent area matched the best of similar local authority areas it would have 28MW.¹⁹ This is a minimum target to be achieved rapidly, and all local authorities should look to exceed it.

To give an indication of what this means in practice, the average onshore wind turbine in Europe is 2.7MW and a 25-acre solar farm will produce about 5MW of electricity. On average 1MW of renewable power produces enough energy for around 125 homes.²⁰

Trees

Trees play an important role in sucking the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it as carbon. They also provide a home for nature, clean up air pollution and reduce flood risk.

According to the Government's National Forest Inventory (NFI) 3% of the Brent area is woodland. The highest proportion in similar areas is 13%.²¹ The NFI is known to significantly under-report tree cover in urban areas, so Friends of the Earth is carrying out further research which we will publish later this year.

All areas should aim to double tree cover as soon as possible.

Those areas with very little tree cover (less than 10%) should make an additional commitment to increase tree cover to 20%.

The Brent area should aim to increase tree cover to 20%.

For those few areas with already high levels of tree cover (30% or more) it may not be feasible to double tree cover. However, even in these areas some more tree planting will be possible.²²

Waste

Making the stuff we buy, using it, and throwing it away all contribute to climate change. Buying less stuff is an important step in cutting greenhouse gases.

For the stuff we do buy, we should reuse, recycle or compost it. Brent reuses, recycles and composts 37% of its household waste.²³ This compares to the best figure of 49% in similar local authorities, while Wales has set its local authorities a target of 70% by 2025. English local authorities should aspire to the same figure, and all local authorities must aim even higher on a path to achieve zero waste (e.g. aiming for zero waste by 2030).

Divestment

Local authorities across the UK invest billions of pounds in fossil fuel companies, the very companies that have caused the climate emergency.

Working out which local authority has what investments is not straightforward, because local authorities often pool funds. An analysis of UK local authority pension funds suggests that on average local authorities invest many millions of pounds in fossil fuels. Along with many others, Friends of the Earth is calling on local authorities to stop investing in fossil fuels.²⁴

Summary of targets for the Brent area

---

Cease supporting or promoting new high carbon infrastructure, such as roads or airports

Annual emissions reductions – 13%

Homes to insulate per year – 5,809

Number of eco-heating systems, such as heat pumps, to fit each year – 3,638

Proportion of commuters walking, cycling or using public transport by 2030 – 80%

Increase lift-sharing – major employers should aim to have 40% of their staff who travel to work by car doing so by lift-sharing

Electric vehicle charging stations by 2030 – at least 92 stations

Renewable energy – at least 28MW

Trees – Aim for 20% tree cover

Household waste reuse, recycling and composting by 2025 – 70% (on path to reach zero waste as soon as possible)

Divestment – zero investment in fossil fuel companies as soon as possible.

4 of the 10 worst London sites for breaches of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) Air Quality Objectives are in Brent

From Friends of the Earth

In answer to Jaine's question (comments below) about air quality on Wembley High Road there is no monitoring station there. This is the map from Brent Council website. Monitoring stations marked in blue:

Sadiq Khan incorporates opposition to fracking into draft London Plan

Anti-fracking protest outside Willesden Green station in 2013

London Local Energy LINK has gone quiet since the summer when it launched a public relations offensive to persuade residents that it was in their interests to support drilling in  Harlesden. LINK

The plans were opposed by local environment groups and Brent Council.

Now Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, has incorporated opposition to fracking in the draft London Plan which is a broad plan to shape the way London develops over the next 20-25 years. The policy comes in the wake of energy companie, including London Local Energy, identifying potential fracking sites in the capital.

Khan said:

There is absolutely no place for fracking in London and I remain firm in my belief that any such application must be refused.

It is my duty to protect the health and wellbeing of Londoners, and it is well documented that the fracking process itself can cause chronic damage to public health, worsen toxic air quality and contaminate water supplies.

The harmful, negative impact of the use of fossil fuels on the environment and on the air we breathe is well known. We must instead focus our resources on developing technologies for the efficient extraction of clean, renewable forms of energy, rather than coming up with more ever innovative ways to keeping burning fossil fuels.

The UK’s Health and Safety Executive estimates that hundreds of people across the country develop lung cancer associated with silica dust exposure, which can occur during fracking. Pollutants such as VOCs and hydrogen sulphide, meanwhile, can worsen neurological problems ranging from dizziness to seizures.There are also fears that the volume of water required in fracking could lead to public water restrictions in areas prone to shortages. 

Rose Dickinson, a Friends of the Earth campaigner  said:

It’s a positive move that the Mayor is stating on principle that London should not be fracked,Though the focus has been in the North of England where most licences have been obtained, wherever fracking rears its ugly head it is opposed - and rightly so because of the known risks from the process.

How schools can take part in clear air action week June 23rd-July 2nd

The NUT nationally has just agreed to endorse the clean air schools pack produced by Friends of the Earth and Muslim Aid  LINK  (or read embedded version below)  that provides lessons plans, assemblies and much more.

Just about every school in London is near enough to a main road to be in breach of EU clean air regulations. This has a significant impact on health. 

The government was taken to court to force it to publish its plans to cut air pollution during the election. Their response was so weak (devolving the responsibility to local authorities with no significant national initiatives) that they are being taken to court again.

Information on the GLA plan to clean up London's air can be see HERE.

Toxic air shock for Brent residents

David Wardle and Pam Laurance (Brent Friends of the Earth) at Sustainability Day at Colindale Public Health England

 On 5th May 2017 the government released its plan for improving air quality and is a call for action from Brent Council and the Mayor of London.  

The plan underlines the importance of the work being carried out by Brent FOE which has contributed to the evidence base indicating the illegal and dangerous levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air in Brent. 

Brent FOE took measurements of the levels of nitrogen dioxide in February this year at 9* locations in Brent, using Friends of the Earth Air Quality kits (available at foe.co.uk).  The locations included playgrounds, schools, high streets, tube stations, and areas that have a significant footfall.   

Nitrogen dioxide is one of many air pollutants.  It is a smelly gas which contributes to smog and respiratory problems.  Nitrogen dioxide inflames the lining of the lungs, and it can reduce immunity to lung infections. This can cause problems such as wheezing, coughing, colds, flu and bronchitis.

Increased levels of nitrogen dioxide can have a significant impact on people with asthma, due to the fact that it can cause more frequent and more intense attacks. Children with asthma and older people with heart disease are most at risk.

The EU legal limit for nitrogen dioxide concentrations is 40µg/m³.  The readings at the 9* locations ranged from 64.81µg/m³ to 94.16µg/m³.  The evidence indicates that all locations had nitrogen dioxide concentrations that were above the EU legal limit, and some were more than double that limit.

FOE is demanding the introduction of a Clean Air Act and a generous scrappage system for diesel vehicles that will significantly reduce emissions.  Contact your local General Election candidates (Contact details HERE) and the Mayor of London to ask them for their views.  If you would like to join Brent FOE or find out more about our campaign, please contact info@brentfoe.co.uk.

*9 locations: Fryent Medical Centre, NW9 9PE; Kingsbury tube station NW9 8XG; 5 Berkeley Rd NW9 9DJ;Roe Green Park, Children’s playground NW9 9DT; 14 Craven Park Road, Housewife Cash+ Carry NW10 4AB; Harlesden Library NW10 8SE; Opposite Greenhill Park Medical Centre NW10 9AR; Harlesden Primary School, Acton Lane NW10 8UT; Shakespeare Avenue Open Space (Nr. A404) NW10 8NG