Fenland District Council to decide on legal challenge over waste-to-energy incinerator planning approval

Councillors in Fenland are considering court action in a bid to overturn the Secretary of State for Energy’s approval of a multi-million pound waste-to-energy incinerator in Wisbech.

Members of Fenland District Council will decide on Monday if they should seek legal advice about a possible challenge to Clare Coutinho MP’s decision to give the green light to the £300 million plus Medworth energy from waste combined heat and power facility at the Algores Industrial Estate.

But any consideration of legal action will come amid an air of uncertainty after the notice of the planning approval, issued on Tuesday (February 20), was removed from the National Infrastructure Planning website.

In its place was a notice stating: “We have removed previously published content. Clarification is being sought on the Medworth Energy from Waste Combined Heat and Power Facility Development Consent Decision. A further update will be provided in due course.”

However officials for Infrastructure Planning and at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero refused to say in detail why the notice had been removed.

However, the uncertainty is unlikely to stop Fenland councillors discussing a motion to authorise officers to instruct legal counsel to provide an opinion on whether there are grounds for a successful judicial review to overturn the Secretary of State’s decision.

The incinerator plan was opposed by Fenland District Council, Wisbech Town Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, Norfolk County Council, and the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk plus action groups and hundreds of residents because of its scale and potential negative impact.

Cllr Steve Tierney, district councillor for Wisbech South, has put forward a motion which states: “This decision is a slap in the face for the local democratic process and has resulted in real fear and understandable anger in the local community.

“The Secretary of State’s decision cannot be appealed but there may be a chance to challenge it at judicial review.”

The motion proposes that officers discuss with other local authorities whether they would contribute towards the cost of a judicial review.

Councillors will also be asked if they wish to invite Claire Coutinho to visit Fenland to explain in detail her reasons for approving the incinerator.