Great British Energy: Nuclear Development

Viscount Trenchard Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd July 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)]

The position of the Government is essentially that we want to see homegrown nuclear energy, as well as wind energy and hydrogen energy, so that we do not have to rely on foreign imports. I completely accept what the noble Lord said; I know it is something that the Government are looking at and want to address.

[Viscount Trenchard (Con)]

My Lords, could the Minister tell the House whether, following this development, it is intended that GBE should merge with what is now called GBE-N—formerly Great British Nuclear—in order to enable joined-up thinking and avoid separate decisions coming out of different silos?

[Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)]

I thank the noble Viscount for that question. The Government’s approach is that these two, Great British Energy and Great British Energy-Nuclear, are allied organisations that will probably work together to produce more clean energy into the future. The target for GBE-N is to focus on small modular reactors in the medium term to generate those jobs and to get a modular system, with technology that we can replicate around the country.