HC Deb 15 December 1986 vol 107 cc759-61
3. Mr. Eastham

asked the Secretary of State for Energy when the Minister of State last met the chairman of the Central Electricity Generating Board to discuss the question of the power supply industry.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy (Mr. Alastair Goodlad)

My right hon. Friend and I meet the chairman regularly and discuss a wide range of issues.

Mr. Eastham

Has the Minister read the reports that prophesy a power crisis in the 1990s, which will lead to possible blackouts? I remind the Minister that his Government promised that one order each year would be placed for a new power station. Although this Government have been in office for nearly eight years, not a single order has been placed for a new power station. Energy from France is being imported to two power stations, yet the NEI and GEC are making people redundant because they have no orders. What does the Minister intend to do about it?

Mr. Goodlad

The Government fully appreciate the importance of maintaining the capability of the industry when home orders are lacking. Considerable aid and support have been provided to the industry to win overseas contracts to help maintain its capability. However, ordering is essentially a matter for the electricity supply industry. The only current application for consent to construct a station is that for Sizewell B. Recently I met representatives of GEC and NEI, and I have passed on their representations to the CEGB.

Dr. Michael Clark

When my hon. Friend met the chairman of the Central Electricity Generating Board, did he discuss with him any contingency plans that would be necessary if a decision were taken not to have a family of pressurised water reactors in this country? If they were implemented, what would those contingency plans mean in terms of power supply in this country?

Mr. Goodlad

No, Sir. Discussion of such matters must await my right hon. Friend's decision on the Sizewell B inquiry.

Mr. Wrigglesworth

When is that likely to be?

Mr. Goodlad

Next year.

Mr. Patrick McNair-Wilson

Can my hon. Friend confirm, or deny, the reports in the weekend press that plans are going ahead for coal-fired power stations on the Channel coast? Will he further confirm, or deny, that those plans include two power stations in south Hampshire, on the edge of the New Forest? Would it not be unusual to build coal-fired power stations so near to the largest oil refinery in Britain and the sixth largest in the world?

Mr. Goodlad

I understand that the CEGB is considering the possibility of building new coal-fired power stations, but my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has received no applications to construct new power stations, apart from that for Sizewell B. The CEGB has identified a number of possible sites for future coal-fired power stations, but has made no firm decisions about where they might be sited.

Mr. James Lamond

Is the Minister aware that the design and building of a power station involves a specialised team, including many hundreds of members of my trade union, the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section of the Engineering Union, in the design part of that work? Will he bear in mind that the dearth of orders over the past seven years has led to the real danger of those specialised teams being broken up and not being available when the Government decide that another power station is needed?

Mr. Goodlad

The hon. Gentleman makes an important point, which is why I said that the Government have helped the power plant industry to maintain its capability by providing aid and support to win overseas contracts.

Mr. Hickmet

Is my hon. Friend aware that the chairman of the CEGB has stated that to abandon a nuclear power programme in Britain would mean an increase of up to 50 per cent. in electricity prices, that continuity of supply could not be guaranteed, that far from being competitive British industry would be hampered, and that for the British Steel Corporation, with an electricity bill of £100 million per year, the consequences of pursuing policies proposed by the Opposition would, frankly, be disastrous?

Mr. Goodlad

My hon. Friend is right.

Mr. Orme

Is the Minister aware that his reply about the Sizewell report is completely unsatisfactory? We understand that part of that report has been given to the Secretary of State. The House and country are entitled to see and debate that report at the earliest opportunity. When will we see it?

Mr. Goodlad

As my right hon. Friend has told the House, Sir Frank Layfield has delivered the bulk of his report, but my right hon. Friend can make a decision only on the full report. However, he intends to reach his decision as quickly as possible when he has the full report. He is legally obliged to have that full report before making his decision. The timing is a matter for the inspector. My right hon. Friend expects to receive the remaining sections of the report by the middle of January.

Mr. Dickens

To ensure that industry has the power that it requires, and to make sure that the lights keep burning at home, did my hon. Friend impress upon the chairman of the CEGB that the three options of coal, oil and nuclear power are essential, and that research into and development of wave, solar and wind power are also required?

Mr. Goodlad

My hon. Friend is correct. A mix of sources is important.

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