Go-ahead for UK nuclear programme

The Fukushima disaster provides no reason to restrict UK nuclear reactors or stop building new ones, the official nuclear regulator has concluded. Dr Mike Weightman, the UK's chief nuclear inspector, found no fundamental weaknesses in the current licensing regime or safety principles. But "continuous improvement" should be sought, he said in his report. The government commissioned the report after the March tsunami damaged Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant. Dr Weightman released a set of preliminary conclusions in May, including recommendations that plant operators should review issues such as ventilation, electrical backup systems, storage of spent fuel rods, and flood protection. His final report expands on those recommendations, but finds no reason to curtail the new build programme that the government wants to fulfil energy and climate change targets. "I remain confident that our UK nuclear facilities have no fundamental safety weaknesses," he said. "But we are not complacent. No matter how high our standards, the quest for improvement must never stop. "Action has already been taken in many cases, with work under way to further enhance safety at UK sites." Earlier this year, Dr Weightman led a fact-finding mission to Japan under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and said that his findings on this trip had fed into the new report. Chris Huhne, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, thanked the chief inspector for his work. "The report makes clear that the UK has one of the best nuclear safety regimes in the world, and that nuclear power can go on powering homes and businesses across the UK, as well as supporting jobs," he said. "We must however continue to improve where we can, not just with operating power stations and new sites, but by dealing with our nuclear legacy in a robust and effective manner too."