Climate activists are suing UK government over food strategy
A lack of proposals to reduce meat and dairy consumption is against the law, activists say
Environmentalists have filed a lawsuit against the government's food strategy for England. They argue that the lack of plans to reduce meat and dairy consumption violates laws like the Climate Change Act.
Leigh Day's lawyers, acting on behalf of the Feedback campaign group, filed an action for judicial review in the High Court on Tuesday. They said the government had failed to take the advice of its own climate change committee and its adviser, Henry Dimbleby, into account when preparing the strategy for England published in June.
Both Dimbleby and the committee have advocated a significant reduction in the country's reliance on meat and dairy, but such a policy would be politically controversial.
A poll by polling firm YouGov last month found that only a third of those surveyed would be willing to cut down on meat and dairy consumption to help fight climate change.
Rowan Smith, an attorney at Leigh Day, said: "Our client believes that it is not right for the government to promise to address carbon emissions as part of its food strategy but fail to take action on one of the biggest polluters problem, namely meat and dairy products.
"The lawsuit focuses on the government's failure to consider professional and independent advice. What is the value of such advice if the government can simply ignore it? Our client hopes to be able to test these arguments in court.
The UK food strategy includes pledges to explore technologies such as alternative proteins, which include plant-based products, but says these foods "complement the traditional livestock sector". . traditional livestock sectors".
One argument in the case is that Environment Secretary George Eustice broke the Climate Change Act by failing to ensure the food strategy heeded the advice of the Climate Change Committee, which should enable it to meet carbon reduction targets.
The committee has repeatedly called for the UK to reduce meat and dairy consumption by a fifth by 2030 and by 35 per cent by 2050. He called the June food strategy a "missed opportunity" for the climate.
The case follows another successful request for judicial review also led by Leigh Day. In that case, a judge ruled in July that the government's plan to reach net-zero emissions was unlawful because it did not provide sufficient detail on how the goal would be achieved.
This challenge was filed by campaign groups such as Friends of the Earth and the Good Law Project, and environmental activist Jo Wheatley.
Carina Millstone, Managing Director of Feedback, said: "Rather than outlining plans to support the public and farmers in the transition to low-carbon food, as promised, the food strategy blithely ignores the meat and dairy issue.
The government has three weeks to submit a summary of its response to the judicial review.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs declined to comment.