Earl Russell
Main Page: Earl Russell (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)
The Sizewell C position is that it will create many jobs in construction and apprenticeships, and for the next 60 years will supply energy to around 6 million homes. It is absolutely right that the idea of the SMR programme is to create a modular reactor which is easy to assemble and duplicate and will keep down costs into the future. It is imperative that we keep ahead of the curve on this.
Earl Russell (LD)
My Lords, given that SMRs will not come online until the mid-2030s, I take this opportunity to ask the Minister what actions the Government are taking to ensure the demand for data centres does not end up with increased use of inefficient and polluting gas. What actions will the Government take to ensure that the energy demand does not end up increasing domestic energy bills?
Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)
The noble Earl asks an interesting question. We want to expedite the introduction of SMRs. If we can possibly bring them forward to 2030 then we will do that. The way to deal with this, to keep prices down, is to keep out of the market for fossil fuels and ensure that we have a variable field of renewable energy, be it solar, wind or nuclear. As I said, we are at the beginning of a golden age for nuclear energy. We will set the plans out now, so that in 10 years’ time we will feel the benefit.