Stonehenge A303 tunnel: Date set for judicial review

Campaigners against the tunnel have labelled it a "complete violation" and "international scandal"

A date has been set for a judicial review of the government's decision to approve a road tunnel near Stonehenge.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps approved the £1.7bn scheme in November against the recommendations of planning officials.

Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS) is challenging the decision because it believes it will have a detrimental impact on the ancient site.

The three-day High Court hearing will be held in London from 23 to 25 June.

The tunnel is part of a £1.7bn investment in the A303 between Amesbury and Berwick Down

The Planning Inspectorate had recommended the transport secretary withhold consent, warning it would cause "permanent, irreversible harm" to the World Heritage site.

But Mr Shapps said the need for the development "outweighed any harm" that might be caused.

The SSWHS said the two-mile (3.2km) tunnel along the A303 will cause "significant harm" to the area.

Honourable secretary for the SSWHS, Kate Fielden described the transport secretary's decision as "outrageous" and the scheme as "appalling".

"Having a date for the court hearing gives us something to aim for in preparing for our challenge," she said.

"There can be no more iconic symbol of the global heritage of mankind than Stonehenge and we have a duty to safeguard it for future generations."

The project, expected to take five years to complete, is scheduled to get under way in 2023.