A man who lost his Norfolk home to the sea will appear in court this summer where he is suing the government for failing to protect him from climate change.
Kevin Jordan claims he has been made a 'climate refugee' after losing his property at Hemsby to coastal erosion.
He is one of two men to have filed a joint legal challenge accusing the state of breaching their human rights and of not doing enough to protect them.
A judge at the High Court has now agreed to hear the case and a two-day session has been scheduled for June.
Mr Jordan said his case had been boosted this week by a European court ruling, which found the Swiss government had violated the human rights of a group of around 2,500 elderly women by not acting on climate change.
"We believe the High Court here will have to take that ruling into account," Mr Jordan added.
His case is one of several launched by environmental activists in recent years to put pressure on politicians over their response to climate change.
It has echoes of an ongoing legal challenge by former Green councillor Dr Andrew Boswell to halt three improvement schemes on the A47 in Norfolk, on environmental grounds.
Dr Boswell's case is funded by supportive members of the public while Mr Jordan's is being backed by Friends of the Earth. In both cases, the government's side is funded by the taxpayer.
Politicians have voiced concern over the trend, arguing that decisions on the climate response should be for elected representatives rather than judges.
READ MORE: 'We're still fighting' - Coastal erosion group hopeful for funds
'A CLIMATE REFUGEE IN MARTHAM'
Mr Jordan, a former marine engineer, bought his home, Ebb Tide, on the Marrams in 2009 for £85,000 after retiring and has spoken fondly of the "peace and solitude" he found there.
He was on the cusp of selling it three years ago before the deal fell through.
Last December the chalet was one of five demolished by Great Yarmouth Borough Council contractors, after coastal erosion left them on the verge of falling into the sea.
A fortnight earlier, two parts of the Marrams road had collapsed onto the beach, leaving several homes structurally impaired and without access to emergency vehicles.
Since then, Mr Jordan has been living in council accommodation in Martham. "It's not what I wanted," he said.
"I used to look out my window at ships passing. Now I look out my window at it's cars passing.
"I am a climate refugee," he added. "I was forced out of my home so they could demolish it due to climate change."
READ MORE: Man's sadness as seaside home is demolished before it is lost to the waves
WHAT IS HIS CASE?
Mr Jordan has launched his legal challenge with Doug Paulley, a disability rights activist from Yorkshire who says that Britain's hotter summers have worsened his health conditions and put him in distress.
The pair are requesting a judicial review of the government’s National Adaptation Programme (NAP).
This is the plan which sets out measures to protect people from the impact of climate change such as extreme heat, flooding and coastal erosion.
The pair argue that the current NAP breaches the Climate Change Act 2008 as it fails to set out lawful ‘adaptation objectives’, and fails to consider and publish an assessment of the risks to the delivery of the measures.
Their case also asks the court to rule that the deficiencies in the national plan breach their human rights by failing to protect their lives, homes and property from foreseeable impacts of the climate crisis.
Mr Jordan hopes that if he wins the case, the government will have to pay compensation to those who have lost their homes to the sea and will be forced to change the criteria for funding coastal defences.
The Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs is contesting all the claims.
READ MORE: Tensions run high in Hemsby after more road collapses
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
Mr Jordan, a former marine engineer said that his case will be helped by a ruling at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg this week.
The landmark decision found the Swiss government had violated the human rights of around 2,500 elderly women by not acting on climate change.
The women, mostly in their 70s, said that their age and gender made them particularly vulnerable to the effects of heatwaves linked to climate change.
The court said Switzerland's efforts to meet its emission reduction targets had been woefully inadequate.
It is the first time the powerful court has ruled on global warming.
Mr Jordan said: "This will impact on the UK because they are saying it affects us, too.
"We believe the High Court here will have to take that ruling into account.
"We're looking quite excitedly at that ruling. I think it's going to help our case exceedingly," he added.
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