Nuclear Energy Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateLord Cunningham of Felling
Main Page: Lord Cunningham of Felling (Labour - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Cunningham of Felling's debates with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
(6 years, 10 months ago)
Lords Chamber The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Earl Howe) (Con)
        
    
    
    
    
    
        
        
        
            The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Earl Howe) (Con) 
        
    
        
    
        My Lords, it is in fact the turn of the Liberal Democrats.
 Lord Henley
        
    
    
    
    
    
        
        
        
            Lord Henley 
        
    
        
    
        My Lords, we will continue to work with CGN on Bradwell, as they have committed to do, and we hope that Bradwell B will become available in due course.
 Lord Cunningham of Felling
    
        
    
    
    
    
    
        
        
        
            Lord Cunningham of Felling 
        
    
        
    
        My Lords, is it not clear that the news from west Cumbria is bad news not just for west Cumbria but for the United Kingdom as a whole? We have an ageing fleet of civil nuclear power stations, which it is essential to replace in order to maintain a baseload supply of electricity 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. There is almost no other way of guaranteeing that. I compliment the Government on their support for Hinkley Point, which is more than the Labour Government did—the previous Labour Government did not build a single nuclear power station, to my regret—but is it not important for them to make an urgent reassessment of how progress is stumbling, at best, before it is too late?