§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is(a) the total quantity and (b) the total percentage of plutonium arising from the reprocessing of foreign spent fuel that has been returned to its country of origin, for each foreign country whose fuel has been accepted, for each year from 1965 to 1989, inclusive.
§ Mr. BaldryI understand from British Nuclear Fuels plc that, between 1965 and 1989, some 3.5 tonnes of plutonium from the reprocessing of overseas spent fuel were returned to the country of origin or sent to a country specified by the owner of the plutonium. The bulk of this plutonium has been of Japanese or Italian origin with smaller amounts originating in Canada, the Federal Republic of Germany, Spain or Switzerland. At the end of 1989, some 0.5 tonnes of extracted plutonium were held in stock at Sellafield awaiting return to overseas owners.