UK taxpayers on hook as failed Cumbria coalmine investors sue government

Singapore firm using secretive international legal system to seek compensation for climate concerns blocking plans

The UK government is being sued in a secretive “corporate court” after a proposal for a new coalmine in Cumbria was quashed by the high court. If successful, UK taxpayers would have to fund a substantial compensation payment to the mine’s investors.

It is the first such case to be filed against the UK government by a fossil fuel company as a result of climate policy. The case uses investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) rules agreed in a 1975 trade agreement between the UK and Singapore, where the major investor in the coalmine is incorporated.