Nuclear Energy Policy: Climate Change

Debate between Virginia Crosbie and Mike Hill

Wednesday 5th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Virginia Crosbie]

I thank my hon. Friend for making that clear point about the nuclear arc and how this will benefit so many more people than just the people on Ynys Môn; it will benefit people throughout Wales. This nuclear arc is going to be very important.

[Mike Hill (Hartlepool) (Lab)]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Virginia Crosbie]

If I may, I will continue. As I was saying, my constituents deserve jobs, skilled employment and investment to reduce dependency on the instability of seasonal tourism. Many of them tell me that they are worried about the future of the Welsh language, as our young people leave the island for cities across Wales and the north of England to gain meaningful employment. Once operational, Wylfa will create up to 850 permanent jobs, with 8,500 at the peak of construction, many of which would be highly skilled roles and training opportunities. We simply must turn the employment situation around on Anglesey and demonstrate that this Government are on the side of those who want to work hard and get on in life. There would also be thousands more jobs in the supply chain beyond the island in north Wales. Wylfa would undoubtedly see a multi-billion-pound investment into the region.

[Virginia Crosbie]

I also thank all the people who work so hard at Sellafield on nuclear research. One of my asks of the Minister will indeed be about the timescale for our getting the White Paper.

If this project does not go ahead, these talented people will inevitably look further afield for work. We cannot and must not allow north Wales to lose out. Even so, it is not the north alone that would lose out; estimates put the wider benefit to Wales as a whole at about £5.7 billion. Moreover, after the plant begins to generate electricity, it is estimated that the contribution could be nearly £87 million in gross value added each year of its operation. As a scientist, I understand that these are not insignificant numbers. But even if we all agree that, as part of the energy mix, nuclear power is the way forward, why Wylfa? Why Ynys Môn? It is because Wylfa is hands down the best nuclear new build site in the UK. The local community on the island understand nuclear energy, having seen at first hand the benefits of the original Magnox station, and there is a large amount of support for the project locally. It is encouraging that despite many major political differences, there is cross-party support for this project, with senior figures from both Labour and Plaid Cymru backing the development.

The Wylfa project is all but ready to progress into construction. It is based on proven reactor technology, which has been delivered four times—on time and on budget in Japan—as elements of the design are based on modular construction. The advanced boiling water reactor has already been put through the UK nuclear regulator’s generic design assessment, a process which took nearly five years, and the development consent order is expecting a decision from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State at the end of March this year. If the process had to be restarted with a different developer, we are looking at the very least at another four to five years of delay. So much of the groundwork has been done. Why would we waste this opportunity? Why would we waste more time?

Financing the project through a model such as the regulated asset base will ensure that the project is funded and started as soon as possible. I would like to know when the Government intend to respond to the consultation responses on adopting such a financing model for new nuclear.

[Mike Hill]

I share the hon. Member’s enthusiasm for advanced modular reactor and small modular reactor provision, particularly from the perspective of Hartlepool and as co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on nuclear. The important point is the money that is generated for the local economy. In Hartlepool, it is roughly £10 million for the local economy and 500 jobs. Does she agree that companies such as EDF that run our nuclear power stations are investing wisely in green alternative provision, so nuclear is effectively a bridge to that future?