§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the inspector conducting the public inquiry into the Hinkley Point C Nuclear Reactor is entitled to appoint his own assistants and staff; if not, why not; and whether the presence of assistants employed by the Department of Energy will not prejudice the impartiality of the inquiry in the eyes of objectors and of the general public?
§ Viscount DavidsonThe Hinkley Point C Inquiry Secretariat is responsible to the inspector, not to the Department of Energy. The inspector, Mr. Michael Barnes QC, is independent of the department, and he will determine the conduct of the inquiry and the content of his report. It is the Department of Energy's normal practice to second staff to form an inquiry secretariat to help an inspector with the administrative running of a major inquiry such as this. In the case of Hinkley Point C some inquiry secretariat staff are also being recruited locally.