Skip to main content
Normal View

Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 29 Mar 2000

Vol. 517 No. 1

Other Questions. - Sellafield Nuclear Plant.

John Gormley

Question:

60 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the plans, if any, she has to make personal representations to the British Prime Minister to convey the Government's concerns about the Sellafield nuclear plant and demands for its closure; and the contact, if any, she has had to date on the matter. [7819/00]

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Question:

64 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the contacts, if any, since 22 February 2000 with the British Prime Minister; and if she raised the issue of the Sellafield nuclear plant. [6029/00]

Trevor Sargent

Question:

107 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will make a statement on recent representations, if any, she has made in regard to the Sellafield nuclear plant and other United Kingdom nuclear installations. [6047/00]

I propose to answer Questions Nos. 60, 64 and 107 together.

I refer the House to my reply to Priority Questions Nos. 51 and 53 today which addresses the matters raised in these three questions.

Will the Minister of State press the Taoiseach to seek a special bilateral meeting with the British Prime Minister to emphasise that the Sellafield nuclear plant will be a permanent bone of contention between the two Governments as long as it remains open? Will the Minister of State take into consideration the effect of closure of the Sellafield nuclear plant on workers in Cumbria and offer the Government's support for measures to be taken by the European Union to ease the effect of job losses?

The Taoiseach has raised this matter on a number of occasions with the British Prime Minister, Mr. Blair. He also met the Danish Minister for the Environment and Energy earlier this week immediately following his meeting with me. Every Member of this House can emphathise with the people of Cumbria who are concerned about job losses. As Deputy Yates is aware, thousands of jobs were lost within a very short period in the fertiliser and pottery industries in south Wicklow and north Wexford. We are aware, therefore, of the hardship job losses can cause. While I agree that we should be as helpful as we possibly can at EU level, the safety and well being of our seas and the nations and peoples which could be affected by their contamination cannot be subservient to the jobs of any group of workers or nation. The experience and expertise gained by the people concerned in the nuclear industry could be availed of in clean-up operations in the United Kingdom and beyond.

While I agree with the Minister of State's sentiments that the safety of our people and that of our neighbours in a country which has also long been used to unemployment is paramount, we should be prepared to do anything we could to help those who may find themselves unemployed in Cumbria. Does the Minister of State recall the paper presented at a meeting of the committee of which I am a member by Dr. Thompson, entitled The Grand Bargain, in which he suggests that the expertise of the people concerned could be brought to bear in clean-up operations in nuclear installations throughout Europe and Russia in particular? This aspect should be given serious consideration to provide employment for those who may lose their jobs in Cumbria, which must be secondary to the safety of our people, the food they eat and the air they breathe.

I agree that the health and safety of our people must take priority; all other considerations are secondary. Professor Gordon Thompson's theory presented in the paper, The Grand Bargain, is an interesting one and makes much sense. He has made presentations to us from time to time and I have read his papers. The expertise gained could be availed of in clean-up operations in some of the less sophisticated plants in eastern Europe which may in time, like Chernobyl, have devastating effects.

The Minister of State seems to be less than enthusiastic about my suggestion of a special well flagged bilateral meeting between the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister. I understand the reasons for this. If there is an opportunity to score a goal there is no point in passing the ball to somebody else. However, I am sure the Minister of State will actively deny this. Will he look at the possibility of organising and chairing a special conference to be attended by Ministers of the countries supplying and affected by the Sellafield nuclear plant? This would have the effect of increasing pressure on the British Government and on British Nuclear Fuels. The British Minister should be included in the conference with a view to forcing the early ending of reprocessing, the current worthy target.

I ask the Minister not to lose sight of the other dangers there, particularly the highly radioactive liquid waste which is stored there. We know they told lies about the other issues and they might be telling us lies about the safety of that also.

Yes. Mindful of Deputy Stagg's experience in this portfolio and the work he has put into it, I would not be unenthusiastic about anything he proposes. The suggestion of a special conference may well be a good one and we will give that positive consideration.

Of course we will continue to press home our serious concerns about many other things, including the storage of high level waste. The Deputy kept pressing that matter when he was Minister of State and I have been pressing it since I came into office. That high level waste is highly dangerous. It is a highly volatile material. The speed at which it is being handled and dealt with through the vitrification process is not in keeping with our demands. Clearing the problem by 2015 is not soon enough.

That and other concerns are underlined by the Government's policy. While we are dealing with the OSPAR Convention as the vehicle to deal with discharges at present, the Government's overall call is for the total cessation of activities at Sellafield. This is just one aspect of it which we are pursuing now. We will endeavour to keep on this particular road at this time.

Top
Share