Nuclear energy has no role in Scotland’s green future
New nuclear power would cost Scottish households while diverting funding and resources from real climate action, says Scottish Green Co-leader Patrick Harvie.
Speaking ahead of a Scottish Government debate on Scotland’s renewable future, Mr Harvie warned that Labour’s focus on nuclear power would risk increasing household bills and would be a gift to a toxic industry that is not offering the solutions we need.
The UK Labour government has proposed building new nuclear power plants across the UK touting so-called ‘small modular reactors’, despite one never having been built and the long-running record of the nuclear power industry running over schedule and budget.
The first nuclear power plant to be built in the UK for over 30 years, at Hinkley Point, is nearing £28 billion over budget and despite the construction phase beginning in 2016, it will likely not generate any electricity until at least 2029 but possibly 2031.
Mr Harvie said:
“This cold war era obsession with nuclear power shows just how out of touch Labour are with the real crisis we face. It is costly, takes years to go online and will leave a long and toxic legacy for future generations.
“New nuclear power would cost billions of pounds at a time when Labour are telling the public that there is no money to tackle poverty or keep pensioners warm. These new reactors would do nothing to reduce the bills that Labour promised to cut during the election.
“Hinkley Point is the perfect example of everything wrong with nuclear power. Its construction has been a disaster for the environment, requiring masses more concrete and steel than initially thought and it is now running significantly over budget and behind schedule. Does Keir Starmer really think the people want more of this?
“It is a distraction from doing the real work that is so important in terms of investing in clean, green renewable energy that will make a big difference for people and planet.
“Keir Starmer seems to have been sold up the river by his friends in the nuclear power industry who promise modular reactors, which have never been built to any kind of scale and don’t remove the major problem of highly toxic nuclear waste that will still scar our landscape for centuries to come.
“Scotland can have a positive and prosperous green future, but nuclear energy has no part in it. We have the resources for a renewables revolution but we need all governments to commit to it rather than taking a big backwards step with nuclear.”