UK road-building scheme breaches climate commitments, high court told

Transport Action Network says 27bn programme does not take account of Paris climate agreement

The government's plans for a multibillion pound road-building scheme would breach the UK's legal commitments to tackle the climate crisis and critically undermine the country's standing ahead of a key summit later this year, the high court has heard.

Lawyers acting for the Transport Action Network (TAN) argued that plans for the UK's huge 27bn road building programme - set out in its Road Investment Strategy 2 (RIS2) last year - did not take into account the government's obligations to reach net zero emissions by 2050 or its commitments under the Paris climate agreement.