Vol. 526 No. 4
220 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the representations that have been made to either the UK authorities or the European Union concerning the ageing accident-prone Wylfa nuclear power plant in Wales which has been shut down since April 2000 due to faulty welds but is due to be repaired and reopened; and if her Department is being kept informed by the UK authorities concerning the ongoing repairs and the Wylfa plant's safety status. [27004/00]
The Government's concerns about the old Magnox reactors, such as those at the Wylfa nuclear power plant, have been made known to the UK authorities both at official and ministerial level on numerous occasions. We have consistently called for the early closure of these reactors which continue to operate well beyond their original design life.
We have also expressed our concerns to the UK authorities about the announcement made in May this year by British Nuclear Fuels that these reactors will be shut down on a phased basis over the next 20 years. Some of the Magnox reactors will close by 2010 but those at the Oldbury and Wylfa plants may remain open until 2013 and 2021 respectively. The Government wants to see all these reactors closed down now and we will continue to press for this.
The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland has been maintaining close contact with the UK Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) about the Wylfa plant. The position taken by the NII is that the plant will remain closed until such time as BNFL satisfies the NII that it is safe to restart operations at the plant.
As to the EU situation, the European Commission does not play a role in regulating the safety of the design, construction and operation of nuclear power plants within the territory of a member state. EU member states who have nuclear power plants have resisted previous proposals to extend the EURATOM Treaty to regulation of this area.
