Court allows Greta Thunberg, activists to sue Sweden over climate
Stockholm: A Swedish court has given Greta Thunberg and hundreds of other climate activists the go-ahead to proceed with a class action lawsuit against the Swedish state for “insufficient climate policy”.
Swedish Thunberg, and 600 other young activists in a group called Aurora, launched proceedings in November, claiming the state had to do more to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in order to live up to the European Convention on Human Rights.
The group said on its website that “the Swedish state does not treat the climate crisis as a crisis”.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg, centre, attends a demonstration by youth-led organisation Aurora, in Stockholm, Sweden, in November. Her sign says “Now we sue the state”. Credit:TT/AP
It wants the court to decide that Sweden needs to cut emissions by at least 6.5-9.4 million tonnes of CO2 per year, counting from 2019.
“The health and future of the planet, and that of ours, is directly dependent on whether or not our politicians recognise the seriousness of the climate crisis, and so Aurora wants to do everything we can to get you to do so,” the group said in an open letter to the Swedish government last year.
On Tuesday, Nacka District Court said the lawsuit could go ahead after the group made adjustments to the claim.
“The district court has today issued a summons in a high-profile class action lawsuit,” the court said in a statement. “In the case, demands have been made for the district court to determine that the state has an obligation to take certain specified measures to limit climate change.”
The Swedish state has three months to respond to the lawsuit before the case could be heard or settled in writing, the district court said, adding it could not say when the suit might be decided.
The Chancellor of Justice did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
On Monday, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that the “climate time bomb is ticking” as he urged rich nations to slash emissions sooner after a new assessment from scientists said there was little time to lose in tackling climate change.
Climate campaigners have launched numerous lawsuits against governments and companies in recent years, with mixed success.
In one of the most high-profile cases, Germany’s top court ruled in 2021 that the government had to adjust its climate targets to avoid unduly burdening the young. The German government reacted by bringing forward its target for net-zero emissions by five years to 2045 and setting more ambitious near-and-medium term steps to achieve that goal.
Reuters, AP
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