A nuclear power station for West Cumbria is unlikely to ever get the go-ahead without the backing of public money. That was the conclusion of a heated debate at a full meeting of Cumbria County Council, which saw an urgent notice of motion agreed after tempers flared among the 80 councillors gathered. It was the first time the council had met following the decision by Toshiba to win up NuGen, the developer behind the £15 billion Moorside power station plans in West Cumbria. The motion raised by David Southward (Lab, Egremont) and seconded by council leader Stewart Young (Lab, Carlisle) read: “Council calls on the Government to enter into urgent discussions with all interested parties and to take any necessary steps to ensure that the nuclear power plant construction project at Moorside goes ahead. “Council considers that due to the level of commercial risk involved in projects of this nature, they are highly unlikely to proceed without Government support, whether that be by way of equity acquisition, underwriting potential losses or guaranteeing the strike price.” Cllr Southward called the decision a “devastating blow” and meant the area missing out on 5,000 construction jobs lasting eight years, and a further 1,000 operational jobs.
In Cumbria 16th Nov 2018 read more »