Ed Miliband faces High Court challenge over 1,175-acre solar farm

Campaign group Halt (Halt All Large Transmission/Solar Farms) is now racing to raise funds for a judicial review after lawyers told them there were "serious and arguable legal flaws" in how the planning decision was made.

The 1,175-acre development, set to be built by Enso Energy west of Camblesforth village, would become the country's largest solar installation once complete, overtaking the current record holder, Cleve Hill Solar Park in Kent, which spans 900 acres.

The group has managed to gather roughly half of the £15,000 needed to launch the legal action, and they reckon they're just days away from hitting their target.

Time is tight though – any challenge must be filed within six weeks of Mr Miliband's December 3 approval.

If Halt does get the case to court, they aim to focus in on whether ministers properly considered the combined effect of multiple energy projects on the local area before signing off on Helios.

The group confirmed all donations will be returned if the fundraising falls short, and the group has promised no money will go towards admin or campaigning costs.

Byron Ward, a 40-year-old who runs the 17th-century wedding venue Camblesforth Hall with his wife, says residents have already had enough.

He pointed to two separate 50MW solar sites currently going up to the north and south of the village, plus renewable schemes linked to nearby Drax power station.

"Despite a lot of opposition towards the project and Mr Miliband, or Ed Milliwatt as I call him, they've just given it the green light on prime agricultural land," he told The Telegraph.

Mr Ward believes officials failed to assess how all these projects together would affect the community.

He's particularly frustrated about losing land that's home to deer, barn owls, bats and birds of prey, along with ancient woodland and popular walking routes used by ramblers and horse riders.

Energy Minister Martin McCluskey, who approved the site on Mr Miliband's behalf, defended the decision by pointing to soaring household bills.

"Families in Yorkshire have seen their energy bills go through the roof as a result of our exposure to volatile gas prices," he said.

"The only way to make British people better off in the long-term is by securing clean, homegrown power that we control."

He added that approving Helios was "another step forward in our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower, creating jobs, driving economic growth and protecting family finances."

Developer Enso Energy, working alongside Cero Generation on the project, says the farm would generate enough electricity to supply 47,500 homes.

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