Nuclear Power: Research

(asked on 21st May 2018) - View Source

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union and (b) Euratom on negotiations on a future association agreement for nuclear research between the UK and the EU.


Answered by
Sam Gyimah Portrait
Sam Gyimah
This question was answered on 29th May 2018

The UK’s objective is to seek a close association with the Euratom Research and Training Programme, including JET and ITER, following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. My rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister reiterated this aim in her Jodrell Bank speech on 21 May, stating that the UK would like the option to fully associate ourselves with the excellence-based European science and innovation programmes, including Euratom Research and Training, and would be willing to make an appropriate financial contribution.

On 23 May, the UK published its vision for the future UK-EU partnership on science and innovation[1], including on nuclear research, setting out the UK’s vison for a far-reaching science and innovation pact. Discussions about a potential future framework for collaboration on Science and Innovation are held with the Department for Exiting the European Union on an ongoing basis. UK officials had early discussions about such a potential framework, including the Euratom Research and Training Programme, with the EU’s Taskforce 50 on 22nd May and further discussions will be had in due course.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/framework-for-the-uk-eu-partnership-science-research-and-innovation.

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