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A legal challenge by environmental campaigners seeking to overturn government approval given for the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas developments has begun in the Court of Session.

Greenpeace insists the UK government's decision to give the developments the go-ahead was unlawful.

And now, the long-awaited court case in Edinburgh has got underway, with a lively band of campaigners outside the court and police officers stationed within.

The Times reports Ruth Crawford KC, senior counsel for Greenpeace, said it was agreed that the approval was unlawful because “downstream” emissions emitted by the use of the fossil fuels extracted were not taken into account in environmental impact documents.

She told the judge Lord Ericht it was accepted that the court has a discretion as to the remedy to correct the unlawfulness.

She said: “Climate change has and will continue to have significant adverse effects on both the environment and on human health. Those effects will occur at local, national and global level.”

Rosebank, north-west of Shetland, is thought to be the UK’s largest undeveloped oilfield, with the potential to produce 300 million barrels of oil.

The hearing is expected to last around four days.

It comes as the Dutch Court of Appeal of The Hague overturned a ruling that forced Shell to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030.

Shell's chief executive officer Wael Sawan, reacting to the decision, said: “We are pleased with the court’s decision, which we believe is the right one for the global energy transition, the Netherlands and our company.

“Our target to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050 remains at the heart of Shell’s strategy and is transforming our business. This includes continuing our work to halve emissions from our operations by 2030. We are making good progress in our strategy to deliver more value with less emissions.”

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