A High Court judge in Northern Ireland accused the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) and the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) of gaslighting him over climate change impacts linked to the A5 dual carriageway project.

Mr Justice McAlinden made the accusation with utmost conviction in a recent judgement. He stated that the current position of DfI and DAERA differs materially from their earlier arguments. The departments now claim their original case matched the present one and that the judge misunderstood it, he added.

The judge rejected this view. He affirmed his full understanding of DfI's initial case, which he analysed in detail. Last year, he quashed approval for the £1.7 million A5 project based on climate change and human rights concerns.

DfI appealed that decision. Lady Chief Justice Siobhan Keegan then sent climate-related evidence, including road impacts on the Climate Action Plan, back to the High Court for review.

Mr Justice McAlinden noted the departments now assert that specific project-level emissions play no role in greenhouse gas inventories or future projections. He said he stands 100 percent by his prior conclusion on this point but will not rule on the new case's merits.

The judgement returns to the Court of Appeal for further proceedings.