§ Mr. Michael Meadowcroftasked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will detail what specific organisational and technical appraisals have been made of the methodology of determining the risks of an accident at a nuclear installation in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Goodlad[pursuant to his reply, 19 November 1986, c. 233]: Operators of nuclear installations in the United Kingdom and overseas have for a number of years been developing and using the technique known as probabilistic risk (or safety) assessment (PRA). This technique has been widely adopted internationally as a valuable aid for assessing the risks of accidents at nuclear installations. Her Majesty's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate now requires PRA assessments to form part of the safety case which must be prepared before a nuclear power station is licensed, and has also asked operators to make similar assessments as part of the long-term reviews now being carried out on the older power stations.