§ Mr. Alex CarlileTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will ensure that the Sizewell B nuclear power station will be provided with containment which is demonstrated to be no less effective than the containment provided for test explosions of nuclear weapons; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what estimate he has made of the consequences of a disruptive explosion of the reactor pressure vessel of the Sizewell B nuclear power station in terms of (a) the total value today of expected losses and (b) the total numbers of injuries and premature deaths; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. EggarAll aspects of the Sizewell B pressurised water reactor (PWR) design including the operational safety of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and containment building, and the possibility of the catastrophic failure of the RPV were carefully scrutinised by eminent independent assessors during the extensive public inquiry into the Sizewell B proposal. These matters are further re-examined at the public inquiry for Hinkley Point C when a similar design of PWR to that for Sizewell B was proposed. The conclusion of both inquiries was that the possibility of RPV explosion was extremely490W remote. Moreover, Sizewell B has been built to a very high technical standard and the independent Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate will not consent to its operation if they are not completely satisfied that it is safe to do so.