Cumbria project will be ‘net zero’, coalmine firm tells high court

Company insists project should go ahead despite new government saying it had been unlawfully approved

The company behind the first new coalmine in the UK for 30 years has argued in the high court on Tuesday that it would be a unique net zero" mine.

West Cumbria Mining (WCM) continued to defend the legality of its mine, which will produce 60m tonnes of coking coal in its lifetime, in the court days after the government said its planning permission was unlawful because it had not taken into account downstream emissions from using the coal.