Jamie Reed
Main Page: Jamie Reed (Labour - Copeland)
Mr Davey
I am grateful for the right hon. Gentleman’s welcome for the statement. I should make it clear for him and the House that today’s decision is about planning. We still have a number of issues to resolve, but we are in intense negotiations.
The right hon. Gentleman makes the point about the infrastructure and pylons. He and I met to discuss the matter recently. I will repeat part of what I said then: every bit of green infrastructure has to be considered case by case; National Grid, under statute, is responsible for examining those cases; and, when planning issues result, the Secretary of State clearly cannot comment on them, as it would be improper to do so. When we met, I undertook to look into the issue. We are looking at it with my hon. Friend the Minister of State, who is energy Minister.
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland) (Lab)
I commend the Secretary of State on his statement. In making this decision, he has clearly listened to many people in all parts of the House over many years, and I particularly commend him on his intellectual honesty in reaching this position.
It goes almost without saying that I, my constituents and my community will continue to assist the Secretary of State and his Department with the solutions required for radioactive waste management in this country, but will he now, in addition to introducing clarity on the strike price, undertake to bring forward a clear critical path for all the sites identified for new nuclear development so that we can further remove the uncertainty surrounding their development?
Mr Davey
I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s comments. He has been a real champion for the nuclear industry, both for his constituents and more widely. I cannot say much more today on the strike price. I hope he understands that. He is right to say that we remain focused on finding a solution on the waste issue. I look forward to continuing to work with him and others on it.