§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the proposed relationship between BNFL and the Liabilities Management Authority. [26787]
§ Mr. Wilson[holding answer 14 January 2002]: The proposed relationship between BNFL and the Liabilities Management Authority was outlined in my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's statement to the House on 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 990. The White Paper next spring will contain further details.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she was first informed that BNFL was insolvent. [25943]
§ Mr. WilsonBNFL first informed my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on 28 November 2001 that it had a deficit of net assets for accounting purposes.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 5 December 2001,Official Report, column 302W, what was the net increase in BNFL's liabilities resulting from the acquisition of Magnox Electric. [25925]
§ Mr. WilsonThe report and accounts of BNFL for the year ended 31 March 1998 stated that the group's nuclear liabilities increased by £7,956 million due to the acquisition of Magnox Electric plc.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what profit figures have been published by BNFL Inc. in the US since 1990. [25946]
§ Mr. WilsonNone. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 20 November 2001,Official Report, columns 163–64W.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what financial penalties have been imposed by the US Department of Energy on BNFL Inc. owing to its failure to meet contractual commitments at the Hanford River Protection project. [25945]
152W
§ Mr. WilsonNone.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Liabilities Management Authority will permit foreign companies to bid and run operations at the Sellafield site once BNFL's initial contract has expired. [25941]
§ Mr. WilsonThe Liabilities Management Authority will place contracts in accordance with national, EU and international requirements relating to public procurement and with a view to ensuring that public sector civil nuclear liabilities are managed as safely, efficiently and cost effectively as possible. Any contractor responsible for operating Sellafield will have to satisfy security and other regulatory requirements relevant to the site.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment has been made of the security implications of an overseas company operating the Sellafield site. [25940]
§ Mr. WilsonAny company responsible for operating the Sellafield or other licensed nuclear site would have to satisfy relevant security and other regulatory requirements. An assessment of the suitability of any company would be made at the time.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans there are for Sellafield employees to receive severance payments from BNFL if the company loses the contract to manage the site and employees transfer to a different contractor company. [25935]
§ Mr. WilsonAny transfer of BNFL employees to another employer would be carried out in accordance with TUPE requirements.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 10 December 2001,Official Report, column 655W, on BNFL, what was the cost of the advice on BNFL's liabilities provided by (a) CSFB, (b) HSBC, (c) Slaughter and May, (d) Arthur Andersen, (e) Deloitte and Touche, (f) Lane, Clarke and Peacock and (g) Mercers. [25923]
§ Mr. WilsonSince the announcement by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on 13 July 1999, payments made to this Department's external advisers are as follows:
£ Adviser Amount CSFB 6,041,000 HSBC 777,000 Slaughter and May 869,000 Arthur Andersen 18,641,000 Deloitte and Touche 1,620,500 Lane, Clark and Peacock 138,500 Mercers 170,000 Total 18,257,000 1 These costs shared approximately 50/50 with BNFL These amounts cover a wide range of advice, eg strategy and shareholder issues, acquisitions and disposals and the valuation and handling of nuclear liabilities.
It is not practicable to identify separately the costs of the above work in relation to liabilities alone.
153W
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what arrangements will be made for employees at Sellafield to maintain their pension plans if the Liabilities Management Authority does not renew BNFL's contract to manage the site and its employees transfer to a different contractor company. [25936]
§ Mr. WilsonAny transfer of BNFL employees to another employer would be carried out in accordance with TUPE requirements and on the basis that pension arrangements would be no less favourable.
§ Lynne JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate she has made of(a) the total cost at present day prices and (b) the cost, on the same basis, to each taxpayer of dismantling all nuclear power installations and making safe all nuclear material that are currently the responsibility of British Nuclear Fuels. [26435]
§ Mr. WilsonBNFL's annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 2001 estimated the group's total discounted gross nuclear liabilities to be £16.1 billion (of which £5.4 billion was recoverable from customers under commercial agreements). In her statement of 28 November 2001,Official Report, column 993, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry said that, in the light of a new strategy for processing its intermediate level waste, which its board had endorsed, BNFL estimated it needed an additional £1.9 billion to provide for its share of the discounted liabilities.
§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement regarding the safety record and future plans for privatisation of British Nuclear Fuels. [25252]
§ Mr. WilsonBNFL publishes annually an Environment, Health and Safety Report, which sets out the company's performance in these areas for the year. A copy is in the Library of the House.
There are no plans for the privatisation of BNFL. However, in her statement to the House on 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 990, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry made clear that HMG will reconsider the scope for the introduction of a PPP into BNFL in 2004–05, in the light of the overall performance of BNFL's businesses, advice from the Liabilities Management Authority, and the views of the industry regulators.