§ Mr. Gordon Wilsonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the research protects supported from public funds being carried out in the United Kingdom on nuclear waste treatment and disposal; by whom and with what source of funds; and what is the extent of the support in each case.
§ Mr. KingA progress report up to the end of 1980 on projects funded by the Department on behalf of the environment departments was published as Pollution Report No. 12 and is available in the Library of the House. The next review, covering the period up to March 1982, will be published in the new year. A wide range of 81W contractors is used, and about 30 per cent. of the work is carried out in the private sector. The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority also funds some projects (in addition to work which it undertakes on contract for other bodies), and information about these is contained in the authority's annual reports.
Expenditure on projects by DOE in 1981–82 was £8.8 million and expenditure by UKAEA was .13 million.
The Ministry of Defence has its own radioactive waste management research programme, parts of which are conducted jointly with the civil authorities on a cost-sharing basis.
If the hon. Member wishes to write to me about a specific interest I shall try to provide more information.