§ Mr. Foulkesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how much Scottish taxpayers have paid per annum for each year of the radioactive waste disposal research programme since its inception;
(2) how much the Scottish Office is contracted to pay the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority for Scotland's share in the radioactive waste disposal research programme (a) since 1975 and (b) till the current programme expires.
§ Mr. RifkindPrior to the 1978–79 financial year the radioactive waste management research programme was the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy. Since then the programme has been funded on behalf of environmental Ministers by my 565W right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. No question of a separate Scottish payment, or the Scottish taxpayers' contribution to it, arises.
§ Mr. Foulkesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how much radioactive waste is produced per annum in Scotland under the present nuclear programme; and how much is low-level, how much medium-level and how much high-level.
§ Mr. RifkindThe production of radioactive waste varies from year to year, but
WASTE ARISINGS AT NUCLEAR SITES IN SCOTLAND IN 1978 Origin and type Low curies Waste category Medium cubic metres High UKAEA Dounreay Solid 8.8 9 Nil Liquid 494 Nil Nil Gaseous 600* Nil Nil BNF Ltd. Chapelcross Solid 3.5 N.A.‡ Nil Liquid 100 Nil Nil Gaseous 32,000† Nil Nil SSEB Hunterston Solid Less than 60 110 Nil Liquid 2,400§ Nil Nil Gaseous 24,500† Nil Nil * Mainly neon 23 of half life 38 seconds. † Gaseous waste contains mainly Argon 41. ‡ Detailed information not available but volume is small. § The liquid waste contains about 2,300 curies of tritium.