" An oil giant gets permission to go after the Scottish government for breaching its 'human rights' ", 25 Feb 2018

Oil giant INEOS has won the right to move forward with challenging the Scottish government for breaching its ‘human rights’ by banning fracking. INEOS claims that the 2017 ban conflicts with a statute in the European Convention on Human Rights.

The company wants the ban overturned, and is also applying for undisclosed damages.

The 2017 ban came after a consultation attracting over 60,000 responses of which around 99% were opposed to fracking.

INEOS, however, opposes the ban and on 23 February received a legal judgement allowing it to take its case to judicial review.

...Last November, INEOS was also granted a wide-ranging injunction preventing “persons unknown” from interfering with their “lawful activity”. Anyone breaching the injunction may be “imprisoned, fined or have their assets seized”.

In each of these cases, INEOS essentially mounts the same defence: its right to pursue its business interests. And it presents it activities as not simply neutral, but good for the community