§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the measures proposed under paragraph 67 of the presidency conclusions of the Vienna European Council in respect of nuclear safety in the context of enlargement of the European Union. [64815]
§ The Prime MinisterThe United Kingdom has a strong interest in ensuring the candidates for European Union membership apply adequate safety standards. The Conclusions of the 7–8 December General Affairs Council on nuclear safety in the context of enlargement, welcomed by Vienna, stress the need for the candidates to attain internationally accepted levels of safety as part of their pre-accession strategies and to meet commitments they have already made in this sector.
The EU is already helping the candidates improve nuclear safety levels and to deal with the cost of early plant closure. This assistance will continue within the overall context of pre-accession assistance set out by the Accession partnerships, which are themselves due for revision later this year.