An environmental group has failed in a court action to block the building of the M74 extension. The £500M scheme in the west of Scotland is designed to relieve congestion on the M8 and bring regeneration to the region. Friends of the Earth Scotland launched the appeal following the executive’s decision to go against the findings of a 2004 public inquiry which concluded that congestion improvements would be shortlived. FoE Scotland withdrew its appeal after receiving legal advice that it was risking a judgement that could extend ministerial discretion. A Scottish Executive spokeswoman said: ‘It’s unfortunate this action has delayed the scheme by a year.’