TELEVISION presenter Chris Packham has announced he is seeking permission to appeal the High Court’s dismissal of a review of HS2.

The decision to dismiss his judicial review of the government’s go-ahead on high speed rail project HS2 was made earlier this month.

Mr Packham has submitted an application for appeal to the Court of Appeal.

The environmental campaigner said: “Despite the devastating dismissal of our case by the High Court, I am determined not to give up.

“In these times of climate and environmental emergency, resilience is key.

“Now is not the time to give up, now is the time to muster and protect what we have left.

“It is heart-breaking that we were not able to stop the clearance works that have already begun on this project.

“I have heard reports from the ground that there has already been low level cutting of hazel in Broadwells Wood [Warwickshire] and the felling of around 15 veteran trees on edge of Crackley Woods [Warwickshire].

“These are ancient woodlands that used to provide a safe and stable home to an abundance of wildlife, parts of which are now gone forever.

“Yet still we fight on, as we must try to protect all the other precious flora and fauna which is at risk from the HS2 project.

“I deeply believe that I still have a strong case against this ludicrously environmentally damaging project, and I will argue in my appeal that the High Court judgment missed key points which still need to be answered.”

Carol Day, solicitor at law firm Leigh Day, added: “Mr Packham is seeking to argue that the High Court failed to properly address parts of his claim in relation to the loss of irreplaceable ancient woodlands and climate change.”

This story first appeared in the Oxford Mail.

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