Welsh Government announces support for nuclear power in Wales

14 March 2012

14 Mawrth 2012

The Welsh Government has chosen the week of the first anniversary of the devastating nuclear melt-down at Fukushima to make a staggering U-turn, and announce for the first time [1] its full support for a nuclear power station in Wales.

Hidden on page 21 of 'Energy Wales: A Low Carbon Transition' [2], launched today by First Minister Carwyn Jones and Environment Minister John Griffiths, the Welsh Government states: "The development of the Horizon nuclear new build (Wylfa B) is a vital component of not just the Anglesey Energy Island programme but of our wider energy future... There are undoubtedly risks associated with nuclear power but the risks posed by climate change are now so serious that we cannot dispense with a key proven low-carbon technology... The Welsh Government supports the development of a new nuclear power station on Anglesey."

Gareth Clubb, Director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said:

"Yet again the fairytale economics of nuclear has persuaded politicians that it's the right way to go. The fact of the matter is that not one light has ever been powered by a nuclear power station that hasn't been in receipt of phenomenal taxpayer subsidy.

"This new policy mortgages future Welsh taxpayers to decades of massive costs associated with radioactive waste and decommissioning.

"And to believe that nuclear power can help build a prosperous Wales is misguided - renewable energy provides far more jobs than nuclear power per unit of energy generated"

"It's also appallingly ironic that this announcement comes hard on the heels of the one year anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Countries around the world are pulling out of the nuclear race, but here the Welsh Government is ploughing a lonely furrow of support.

"We don't need expensive nuclear power. It's unnecessary, it's dangerous, and it squeezes out money that would be better spent on developing renewable energy and energy efficiency."

NOTES

1. The previous energy policy, published just two years ago, stated that the huge potential for renewable energy in Wales "obviates the need for new nuclear power stations". Welsh Assembly Government, March 2010, A low carbon revolution: The Welsh Assembly Government Energy Policy Statement
2. Welsh Government, March 2012, Energy Wales: A Low Carbon Transition