§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of Stale for Defence if he will publish the new evidence that he has of safety risks involved in the storage of radioactive waste at Rosyth dockyard.
§ Mr. LeeThere is no new evidence of safety risks involved in the storage of radioactive waste at Rosyth dockyard.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when the decision was made to store radioactive waste at Rosyth dockyard for a 10-year period;
(2) on what basis he is considering storing radioactive waste at Rosyth dockyard for a 20-year period;
(3) when he will consult the trades unions concerned about his proposal for the storage of radioactive waste at Rosyth and Portsmouth dockyards for a period of 20 years.
§ Mr. LeeIn 1983 the MOD drew up plans for the storage at Rosyth and Devonport dockyards, for a 10-year period, of certain categories of radioactive waste arising from nuclear submarine refitting which had previously been disposed of at sea, pending the development of a permanent disposal route. At Portsmouth naval base small arisings of radioactive waste unconnected with nuclear refitting are stored pending disposal by approved routes. All these matters have been discussed with the trades unions.
Rosyth and Devonport were recently asked to draw up plans for 20 years storage to cater for any possible delay in the development of long-term disposal arrangements. When proposals on this have been formulated we will be discussing them with the unions.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the creation of a new burial ground for radioactive waste at Rosyth dockyard.
§ Mr. LeeNone. The facilities will take the form of secure storage buildings. I refer the hon. Gentleman to the other answers I am giving him today on this subject.
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§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration he has given to the creation of a new dumping ground outside Rosyth dockyard for the radioactive waste that arises from nuclear work at Rosyth dockyard.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if the radioactive waste arising from the decontamination of the Revenge and Resolution submarines is being stored outside Rosyth dockyard;
(2) if he plans to store the radioactive waste arising from the decontamination of the Repulse submarine within Rosyth dockyard.
§ Mr. LeeRadioactive waste arising from nuclear submarine decontamination is of a character which, depending on preparation methods, may be disposed of in a variety of ways. In the case of all three submarines in question, the waste has been or is to be removed from Rosyth for disposal by approved means.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the commercial companies known by his Department to have expressed interest in a private takeover of Rosyth or Plymouth dockyards on a franchise basis.
§ Mr. LeeFor reasons of commercial confidentiality I am not prepared to list the names of the companies concerned.