Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill

Lord Wigley Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 21st February 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Wigley (PC)]

My Lords, I am delighted to follow the noble Lord, Lord Ravensdale. I agree very much with what he said, particularly his reference to hydrogen. I also wanted to comment on the speech by the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, who was spot on, not only in his content but in the passion with which he put forward his points.

I speak in a personal capacity, as Plaid Cymru, like most parties, has a spectrum of views on nuclear matters. Plaid MPs did not oppose Second Reading and the two local authorities, Gwynedd and Ynys Môn, which cover the nuclear power sites of Trawsfynydd and Wylfa, are both Plaid-led. Both councils support re-establishing nuclear energy generation on those sites, subject to safety, environmental, employment and community provisions. Indeed, we were moving towards securing Wylfa Newydd when Horizon proposals faltered on financial issues and Hitachi pulled out, so the Bill is very relevant. There is particular support for SMRs at these sites and, while I appreciate that the Bill is a facilitating measure, not tied to specific technologies, I hope that the Minister can indicate greater urgency by the Government for the SMR programme and for securing from the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority a freeing up of land at Trawsfynydd for Cwmni Egino, the site development company created by the Welsh Government, to facilitate an SMR demonstrator plant and develop medical radioisotope production there.

The main purpose of today’s Bill is to speed up investment in a new generation of nuclear power plants. I support the Government’s aim of fully decarbonising the generation of electricity by 2050, but will the benefits of this Bill be felt in time to meet the 2035 interim target of a 78% reduction in carbon emissions compared to 1990?

I accept that nuclear has a key role in guaranteeing electricity supplies for everyone in these islands when full decarbonisation is reached. This is implicitly part of the energy decarbonisation contract between government and the people.

We do not know what the constitutional relationships within these islands will be by 2050, but I believe that all four nations will be part of an integrated European electricity network through which the sale of low-carbon electricity will offer substantial financial returns.

Writing recently in Social Europe, Sarah Brown of the Ember think tank, warned:

“Europe is still in denial about fossil gas.”


She stated that there is an overwhelming consensus that limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees requires

“the rapid and complete decarbonisation of the power sector”.

A United Nations Economic Commission for Europe report, published in October, showed that for each kilowatt hour of electricity generated the grams of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere are, for coal, 1,000 grams; for gas, 430 grams; for solar, 37 grams; for wind, 14 grams; and for nuclear, 5 grams. These full-life cycle figures include the carbon implications of mining, construction, operation and decommissioning of relevant plant.

We need a complete end to the use of coal, oil and gas for generating electricity and their replacement by dependable low-carbon sources of energy. There is an important role for renewables—solar power, wind generators and tidal and estuarial energy such as the Severn barrage—but they cannot generate all our electricity on the consistent, reliable, 24/7 basis necessary to meet in a timely fashion the needs of each household and place of work. Developments in hydrogen technology and battery capacity will play a role, but the basic challenge remains. Eventually, we may see a renewable, fully decarbonised electricity generation sector if we have the political will, but the clock is ticking towards a global warming profile in which human life on this planet will be snuffed out. Our present trajectory is unsustainable.

Over time, we shall see new clean sources becoming available. We have long awaited fusion as a better source than nuclear fission; recent developments at the Joint European Torus facility at Oxford are encouraging. I hope this Bill might facilitate nuclear fusion investment in due course, but we cannot base our 2050 target on the assumption that fusion will be in place. We have a period of perhaps half a century when the gap between low-carbon supply and demand must be met from a dependable source. Over that timescale, nuclear electricity is an essential part of the clean energy mix.

There are valid questions about the cost of nuclear power. If we are going to support nuclear with this type of financial intervention, how do we ensure that we maximise the UK’s industrial opportunities with technologies and manufacturing capabilities that can be exported as well as used for our own clean energy needs? With the UK taxpayer funding nuclear in this way, we must ensure that the UK economy benefits fully from the opportunity this affords. One major issue of concern relates to the cost of clearing up nuclear power sites; this must be factored into the equation.

I also want assurance that the Bill can cover a variety of sources of nuclear generation, including SMRs and eventually nuclear fusion. We must ensure that the model which has been developed can benefit other developers, and should not be seen as one customised solution for the benefit of EDF at Sizewell C. What commitment can the Minister give that other technologies and potential projects can benefit from this Bill?

I shall also be seeking greater clarity on the role of devolved Governments in designation, licence modification, consultation, transfer schemes and decommissioning.

Because of the pressing need for a new generation of safe, clean, low-carbon nuclear generation facility to underpin our carbon footprint commitments, I am content for this Bill to have a Second Reading.