§ Sir Robert SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the Government's policy towards the management of(a) high level, (b) intermediate level, (c) low level and (d) very low level nuclear waste. [32082]
§ Mr. MacdonaldI have been asked to reply.
The overall policy on the management of all types of radioactive waste was most recently set out in the White Paper "Review of Radioactive Waste Management Policy" (Cm 2919), published in 1995.
The Government have been considering the implications of the decision of the former Secretary of State for the Environment to dismiss Nirex's appeal against the refusal of planning permission for a rock characterisation facility at Longlands Farm, near Sellafield. The House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology is currently undertaking an inquiry into nuclear waste management. We welcome the committee's inquiry, and will wish to await their report—which is expected in the summer—and undertake widespread consultation before coming to a firm view on the way forward.