To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on the extent to which proposers of any new nuclear stations should be responsible for the costs of nuclear waste management, with reference to his reply on a blog on energy and environmental policy hosted by the No. 10 Downing Street website on 19 November, that it would be for the proposers of any nuclear power stations to cover the cost of nuclear waste primarily. (167910)

[holding answer 6 December 2007]: I have been asked to reply.

The Government set out in our recent public consultation “The Future of Nuclear Power” our preliminary view that it is in the public interest to give private sector energy companies the option of investing in new nuclear power stations. In the event that we confirm our preliminary view, the consultation sets out in detail, a process to design financing arrangements that will ensure nuclear power station operators accumulate sufficient funds to meet their costs of waste disposal and decommissioning and that these funds are secure, even in extreme situations, such as insolvency. This mechanism would be set out in legislation.