After anti-nuclear campaigners spent decades trying to stop new nuclear power stations, will Britain’s £70 billion new build programme come crashing down anyway because the contractors have walked out and a huge skill shortage make it impossible to build them. Britain’s £70 billion nuclear programme is in serious trouble. Contractors have either started or are threatening to pull out of four planned nuclear power stations. There is also huge recruitment crisis to get enough trained staff to build them in the first place. The country could literally be on the blink as 14 out of the 15 existing nuclear power stations are due to close by 2030 – drastically reducing the current 21 per cent share of electricity generated by nuclear power. A damning report has been produced by the Nuclear Skills Strategy Group, an employer led organisation, which includes representatives of government, the unions and a representative from China. It shows that the UK has an enormous skill shortage of available engineers and could face an “age related cliff-edge loss of current skills and experience” as well qualified staff reach retirement. Many of the current experienced staff are in their 50s and 60s.
Byline 19th Dec 2018 read more »