The government’s highest administrative court has ruled badgers are more important than a wellness centre and has torn up a local council’s new zoning plan.

Wijchen town council had approved a plan to build a new sauna and spa in nearby countryside but the Council of State said it had not done enough to ensure the local badger population was left unharmed.

Local environmental groups had gone to court to have the plan overturned. Badgers are protected in the Netherlands and there are at least three setts in the locality, campaigners say. One sett would have been destroyed in the building process.

In addition, the court criticised the reasoning behind the council’s decision to approve the development. Although the aim is to encourage more people to swim in the lake in the Berensdonck recreational area, the council only focused on the shortage of facilities for nudists, the Council of State said.

There are other wellness complexes in the area where people can go and where swimwear is compulsory, the council said in its reasoning.