Notes to Editors:

Notes to Editors:

[1] The Link Quarry Group represents a number of Scottish environment groups including Friends of the Earth Scotland, Ramblers Scotland, RSPB, WWF Scotland, Rural Scotland, Sustrans, NEMT and Scottish Wildlife Trust.

[2] LAFARGE AGGREGATES LIMITED AND OTHERS v. SCOTTISH MINISTERS AND OTHERS Lord Marnoch and Lord President and Lord Weir 9/1/2004 Full text available from here: http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/opinions/XA99.html

Some key conclusions:

Lord President: [51] "The land to which a relevant planning permission relates" means, in my view, the land in respect of which specific minerals development has been authorised. In the circumstances of the present case land which satisfies that description comprises only the three areas identified in the 25 inch map. The remainder of the 600 hectares does not satisfy that description since winning and working of minerals in these areas has never been authorised...

[52] ...one of the appellants' contentions was that the reporters had exceeded their remit in recommending that the three areas should be entered in the list, in respect that they were only concerned with the existence and validity of 1965/79. I am wholly unpersuaded by this contention...

Lord Marnoch: [55] ...I should make it clear that, had it been necessary to do so, I, myself, would have been prepared to go further and hold that a "planning permission in principle" or any other supposed "planning permission" which, like "1965/79", prohibited the commencement of work pending further approval of aspects of the application could not in any circumstances itself constitute a "relevant planning permission"...

[59] In agreement with your Lordship in the chair I am of opinion that there is no substance whatever in Grounds of Appeal 5 and 6 relative to the vires of the Scottish Ministers' decision...

60] ... all the Grounds of Appeal ... come back to the same point, namely the proper construction of the definition of "relevant planning permission" for purposes of Schedule 9 to the 1997 Act. ... I am satisfied that any reasonable construction of that phrase in the end leads to a dismissal of the present appeal.

Lord Weir: [70] I agree with your Lordship in the chair that the "land to which a relevant planning permission relates" means the land in respect of which specific minerals development has been authorised. As it has transpired, the only authorisation which has been made relates to the areas identified in the 25 inch map. The remainder of the large area has not been authorised for development as a mineral site and accordingly cannot be listed. In my opinion the decision reached by the Ministers in accepting the recommendations of the reporters was correct, and I agree with your Lordships that the appeal should be refused.

[3] Background: In November 2003, Lafarge went to the Edinburgh's Court of Session in an attempt to overturn an earlier decision which prevented it from establishing a superquarry. The company was claimed that a permission given back in 1965 by the now defunct Inverness County Council was still valid and would allow a superquarry to proceed.

If successful the Harris superquarry would be Britain's biggest ever quarry. Fifty times larger than conventional UK quarries the proposal by one of the world's largest aggregate companies, Lafarge Aggregates, would cover an area 459 hectares in area. A Scottish mountain would be reduced to a sea loch leaving a scar six times the height of the White Cliffs of Dover.

For more details: http://www.foe-scotland.org.uk/nation/superquarry_update.html