Boris Johnson’s U-turn on a new coal mine in Cumbria is welcome

Editorial: The case against the proposed site is not as simple as it seems at first glance, but it is strong

Wind turbines in Cumbria, where a new mine is unlikely be given the go-ahead (PA)

There is nothing wrong with a U-turn if it means that a government abandons the wrong policy and adopts the right one. The case of the proposed coal mine in Cumbria has seen such zigzagging from both the local council and the national government that a U-turn is too simple a description.

The important point is that Boris Johnson has ended up in the right position. This week’s confirmation that the project will not go ahead came in the form of a letter from a planning decision officer in Westminster to Cumbria County Council. Formally, Robert Jenrick, the communities secretary, has “called in” the planning application and has not yet made a decision. There will now be a public inquiry that will take months. Ministers pretend that they still have open minds. But it is reasonably clear that the project will never be given the go-ahead.

The case against the mine is not as simple as might be assumed, but it is strong and Mr Johnson is under pressure due to the government’s ambitious meta-policy of making the British economy carbon neutral by 2050.