Uk government forced to cancel ai data center approval after failing to assess climate impact

In a significant legal reversal, the UK government has admitted that its planning approval for a massive AI data center in Buckinghamshire should be scrapped due to inadequate environmental review. Environmental campaigners are calling the government’s about-face an “embarrassing climbdown” that highlights the administration’s failure to properly consider climate consequences.

The controversial project involved a hyperscale data center planned for greenbelt land near the M25 motorway. Former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner had initially overruled local council opposition to approve the facility, citing Labour’s commitment to accelerating private AI investment. However, the decision came under intense legal scrutiny when critics argued that the government had bypassed required environmental impact assessments.

Current Deputy Prime Minister Steve Reed has now conceded that the original reasons for waiving the environmental review were “inadequate” and acknowledged that the planning permission “should be quashed.” This admission came during an ongoing legal challenge brought by environmental campaigners who argued that such a large-scale development required thorough climate impact analysis.

The case underscores growing tensions between the UK’s push for rapid AI infrastructure development and environmental protection requirements. Data centers are notorious energy consumers, often requiring substantial electricity for both operations and cooling systems. The government’s reversal suggests that even projects aligned with national technology priorities cannot bypass established environmental safeguards, particularly when built on protected greenbelt land.