§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will specify the procedures for recovery of losses incurred by BNFL on nuclear reprocessing contracts in the UK in the process of cancellation by German interests(a) under contract and (b) under inter-governmental agreements; if he will specify the amount of such losses; and if he will make a statement. [66836]
§ Mr. ByersMy hon. Friend the Minister for Energy and Industry and I met the German Environment Minister, Juergen Trittin, on 20 January to discuss BNFL's reprocessing contracts with Germany.
We made clear to Mr. Trittin that the decision to phase out nuclear power was a matter for Germany herself to decide.
But we also stressed that the costs of that decision should not be borne by BNFL which had entered into legally binding contracts in good faith. It would be wrong for the company to suffer financially from a change in German policy over which they had no control. We also emphasised the point that the contracts would be determined under English law. BNFL are firmly of the view that the German utilities are under a clear contractual obligation.
We also made it clear that, if the 650 tonnes of German spent fuel in store at Sellafield were not to be reprocessed, then it would have to be returned to Germany. The UK will not act as a permanent storage depot for nuclear material. We were pleased to announce that Mr. Trittin agreed that a joint working group of UK and German officials be established to work out the practical details of returning the German material should this prove to be necessary.