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Exclusive: How Brexit Could Help The Government Dodge Punishment For Breaking Environmental Laws

The British government could dodge sanctions for breaking a range of environmental laws because of a lack of clarity over what happens post-Brexit, it has been revealed.

There are currently 11 environmental protection cases that could end up in a “dead end” if they are not taken up by a new UK independent regulator after departure from the EU, analysis by Unearthed, Greenpeace’s investigations unit has found.

Campaigners say the findings will raise fresh concerns about the government’s future dedication to green concerns – an issue which will return to the fore on Wednesday, as the government’s environment bill has its second Commons reading.

Among the outstanding cases is the UK’s failure to bring nitrogen dioxide pollution, much of which comes from diesel vehicles, within legal levels. The court is yet to rule on the case, referred in 2018.

“It’s a real concern for us, what may happen after Brexit and whether air quality will even be a real priority,” Jemima Hartshorn, founder of air quality activism group Mums For Lungs, told HuffPost UK.

“The government is simply going to be focused on making Brexit seem like a success, and it’s going to be very difficult to hold them to account when we are not a member of the EU.”

A low fog in Canary Wharf, London
A low fog in Canary Wharf, London

Under the withdrawal agreement, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) will have jurisdiction over all referrals for breaches of EU law before the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31 – and cases can continue to be launched up until the end of 2024.

But legal experts say that there is a risk of them meeting a “dead end”, if for political and financial reasons the EU does little to proactively transfer them to the new Office of Environmental Protection, the UK’s post-Brexit environmental regulator. Boris Johnson has also refuted the idea of EU jurisdiction after Brexit.

Environmental lawyers at ClientEarth, who brought similar cases against the government in the past and won, fear it will not progress to a...

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