§ Mr. BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 13 May,Official Report, column 571, if he will list the research programmes currently in hand; who is conducting each research programme; by what date he expects each research programme to be completed; what is the cost of each research programme: and if he will place copies of the report of each research programme in the Library.
§ Mr. AitkenResearch is being directed towards methods of destroying organic materials such as ion exchange resin which are associated with the decontamination of the reactor plant of nuclear-propelled submarines. This work is being carried out under the contract by AEA Technology at Harwell and Rolls-Royce and Associates at Derby. The atomic weapons establishment is pursuing a number of in-house initiatives towards minimising the volumes of wastes by improved segregation at source and improved monitoring. These are ongoing research programmes with no fixed end date. Details of costs and the reports of the programmes cannot be released for reasons of security and commercial confidentiality.
§ Mr. BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what account he has taken of the observations made in the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee's 13 annual report, paragraph 3.14; and if he will formally invite the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee to carry out a review of his Department's standards for radioactive waste management.
§ Mr. AitkenMy Department welcomes the reviews carried out previously by RWMAC and we have been in discussion with RWMAC in relation to a review to be carried out in 1994. My officials are already preparing a letter of invitation.