In the Nuclear Pocket? PDF Print E-mail
Rich Cookson and Andy Rowell, 20 January 2009

A British local council has requested hundreds of thousands of pounds from two companies that want to build a new nuclear power station near its area, even though it will play a major role in granting planning approval for the project.

A letter, obtained by NuclearSpin, reveals that Sedgemoor District Council asked British Energy and EDF for a payment of £750,000 in July. The two companies want to build a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point on the Bristol Channel. The proposed site is in West Somerset District Council but the project will have a major impact on Sedgemoor. The funding will pay for a planning officer and legal advice.

Anti-nuclear campaigners accuse Sedgemoor of a conflict of interest because it will have considerable influence over planning approval for the proposed new station.

The exact role the council will play is unclear because the Government is currently steering far-reaching changes to planning law through Parliament. Its Planning Bill wants applications for such major projects to be heard by a new Infrastructure Planning Commission, but the Local Government Association wants councils to be given special status in the planning process and consultations.
 
The letter from the Council’s Corporate Director for Regeneration, Doug Bamsey, says: “Sedgemoor District Council is willing to provide a lead role and work with adjacent councils to provide the process with strategic and coordinated responses to local issues through the agreed Nuclear Energy Board.”
 
“It is however unable to bear the financial burden of this. I therefore request that you consider making funds available to help us create an energy policy / planning officer who would be the key coordinating point, with admin capacity and a working fund for meeting rooms and so on. I estimate this to be in the order of approx £100k pa over the next 5 years.”
 
Bamsey also asked for “a technical or consultancy budget to be able to seek professional expertise to help us understand the issues and inform the debate. This would be for predominantly for [sic] legal, economic or transport assessments. This is difficult to estimate but I would expect this to be in the order of £200 – 250k in this initial 2-year period.”
 
Sedgemoor District Council, West Somerset District Council and Somerset County Council have formed an organisation called the Somerset Nuclear Energy Group (SNEG) to deal with the proposal from British Energy and EDF.

There is contradictory evidence as to whether Sedgemoor was acting alone when it approached the nuclear industry or as part of SNEG. When asked by SpinWatch to clarify the situation, Bamsey replied: “It was us who asked the question, but we did do in the knowledge that we are working with the other two councils.”

When pressed further whether the other councils such as Somerset knew of the letter being sent beforehand, Bamsey maintained: “We have had a conversation with the two authorities in terms of knowing the issues that were being asked and they are certainly aware that that letter exists and we have worked in the knowledge of that letter existing. Yes.”

However a spokesperson for Somerset County Council (SCC) denies that anyone knew about the letter and says the first they knew about it was when it appeared on the SpinWatch website. Head of communications for the Council, Simon Clifford, says that: “Our planning portfolio holder took a conscious decision not to approach the nuclear industry.” Clifford maintains that SCC has always argued that “we would approach the government to make representations, but not the nuclear industry.”

Clifford adds: “I can give you a categoric assurance that SCC has always been clear in all meetings, that we do not support asking the nuclear industry for resources. We have been invited to, and attended, meetings to discuss the issue – and gone to strenuous lengths to make our position clear – we have this on the record.” 

The dilemma the councils find themselves in is that they will have to find the money from somewhere, whether it be from the nuclear industry, national government or local council tax payers.

British Energy and EDF have already started investigative work on the proposed site and held a series of public consultations on their plans in nearby towns and villages. If the project goes ahead, they expect to make a planning application by 2011 and for the new reactor to be completed by 2017.