Energy Bill [HL]

House of Commons

Session 2003 - 04
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Other Bills before Parliament

Energy Bill [HL]

Energy Bill [HL]
Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
7

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Designations relating to Scotland
(1)
A direction under section 6 which—
(a)
gives the NDA responsibilities falling within subsection (2), or
(b)
removes or varies any such responsibilities,

may be given only by the Secretary of State and the Scottish Ministers, acting
5
jointly.
(2)
The following responsibilities fall within this subsection—
(a)
responsibility for the cleaning-up of a site in Scotland which is a
principal nuclear site without being a licensable site;
(b)
responsibility for the cleaning-up of a contaminated site in Scotland;
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(c)
responsibility for the operation of facilities for treating or storing
hazardous material in or on a site in Scotland which is a principal
nuclear site without being a licensable site;
(d)
responsibility for the operation in or on a nuclear site in Scotland of a
facility for the disposal of hazardous material;
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(e)
responsibility, in specified circumstances, for the disposal at a site in
Scotland of hazardous material;
(f)
responsibility for the treatment or storage of hazardous material that
may, in the discharge of that responsibility, be treated or stored in or on
a site in Scotland which is not a licensable site;
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(g)
responsibility for the decommissioning of an installation comprised in
NDA facilities that are situated in or on a site in Scotland which is a
principal nuclear site without being a licensable site.
(3)
Before giving a direction under section 6 which—
(a)
gives the NDA responsibilities for the operation in or on a licensable
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site in Scotland of a facility for the non-processing treatment of
hazardous material;
(b)
gives it responsibilities not falling within subsection (2)(f) for the non-
processing treatment or the storage of hazardous material the
treatment or storage of which, in the discharge of those responsibilities,
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may take place in or on a site in Scotland;
(c)
gives it responsibilities for the operation in or on a licensable site in
Scotland of a facility for the storage of hazardous material; or
(d)
removes or varies any responsibilities mentioned in paragraph (a) or
(c),
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the Secretary of State must consult the Scottish Ministers.
(4)
In this section—

“licensable site” means a site that falls within paragraph (a), (b) or (d) of
the definition of a “principal nuclear site” in section 39(2);

“non-processing treatment” means treatment that does not consist in the
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processing or reprocessing of spent or irradiated nuclear fuel.
Other functions of NDA
10
Supplemental functions
(1)
In addition to its function under section 6, the NDA shall have the function, to
the extent that it considers it appropriate to do so, of—
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Energy Bill [HL]
Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
8

(a)
carrying out research into matters relating to the decommissioning of
nuclear installations, the cleaning-up of nuclear sites and the other
activities in relation to which it has functions;
(b)
promoting the carrying out of research by others into those matters;
(c)
distributing information about those matters;
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(d)
educating and training persons about those matters;
(e)
giving encouragement and other support to activities that benefit the
social or economic life of communities living near designated
installations, designated sites or designated facilities or that produce
other environmental benefits for such communities.
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(2)
The NDA shall also have the function, to the extent that it is required to do so
by the Secretary of State, of acting on his behalf in relation to agreements to
which he is a party and which relate to expenditure incurred, or to be incurred,
by him or by others—
(a)
on the decommissioning of nuclear installations;
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(b)
on the cleaning-up of nuclear sites; or
(c)
on the treatment, storage, transportation or disposal of hazardous
material.
(3)
A requirement of the Secretary of State under subsection (2) may require the
NDA to meet, in whole or part, the cost of discharging liabilities of his under
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the agreements in relation to which the NDA acts on his behalf.
(4)
The NDA’s functions further include—
(a)
to the extent that it is required to do so by the Secretary of State, giving
advice to the Secretary of State or to others (whether generally or in
relation to a particular installation, site or facility, or particular
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hazardous material) about any of the things in which the NDA requires
an expertise for the purpose of carrying out its functions;
(b)
to the extent that it is required to do so by the Scottish Ministers, giving
advice to them (whether generally or in relation to a particular
installation, site or facility, or particular hazardous material) about any
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of those things (so far as they concern Scotland); and
(c)
giving to the Secretary of State and the Scottish Ministers such further
general advice about the things in which the NDA requires an expertise
for the purpose of carrying out its functions as it considers appropriate.
(5)
The references in subsection (4) to the things in which the NDA requires an
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expertise for the purpose of carrying out its functions include, in particular—
(a)
the operation and decommissioning of nuclear installations;
(b)
the cleaning-up of nuclear sites; and
(c)
the treatment, storage, transportation and disposal of hazardous
material.
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(6)
It shall be the duty of the NDA to secure that the discharge of its
responsibilities under section 6(1) is not adversely affected—
(a)
by the doing of anything mentioned in subsection (1); or
(b)
by the carrying out of its functions by virtue of subsection (4)(c).
(7)
Where—
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(a)
the NDA provides advice to the Scottish Ministers in pursuance of a
requirement imposed by them under this section, and

Energy Bill [HL]
Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
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(b)
the requirement is not one imposed with the agreement of the Secretary
of State,

the NDA may charge for the provision of the advice.
(8)
The amount of the charge shall be such sum as may be—
(a)
agreed between the NDA and the Scottish Ministers; or
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(b)
in the absence of agreement, determined by the Secretary of State.
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Special functions in relation to pensions etc.
(1)
The NDA shall have the function, to the extent that it considers it appropriate
to do so, of—
(a)
establishing schemes for the payment of pensions, allowances or
10
gratuities to or in respect of one or more different descriptions of
relevant employees;
(b)
maintaining such schemes (whether or not established by the NDA);
and
(c)
administering a scheme for the payment of compensation in respect of
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personal injuries or death caused to relevant employees or to others
employed in the nuclear industry.
(2)
In this section “relevant employees” means—
(a)
employees of the UKAEA;
(b)
persons the duties of whose employment with any other person relate
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(in whole or in part) to activities carried on for purposes connected with
the carrying out by the NDA of any of its functions; or
(c)
a person employed in the nuclear industry who is of such a description
as may be designated for the purposes of this subsection by the
Secretary of State.
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(3)
Before making a designation for the purposes of subsection (2)(c), the Secretary
of State must consult the NDA.
General duties and powers of NDA
12
General duties when carrying out functions
(1)
It shall be the duty of the NDA, in carrying out its functions, to have particular
30
regard to each of the following—
(a)
relevant Government policy, including the desirability of optimising,
through its employment arrangements and other NDA contracts, the
social and economic life of the community and, during the period that
it has responsibility under a direction under section 6 for securing the
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operation or decommissioning of any installation, of maintaining or
enhancing so far as practicable the levels of support to that life that
were made by the operator of the installation prior to the direction
being made;
(b)
the need to safeguard the environment;
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(c)
the need to protect persons from risks to their health and safety from
activities involving the use, treatment, storage, transportation or
disposal of hazardous material; and
(d)
the need to preserve nuclear security.

Energy Bill [HL]
Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
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(2)
It shall also be the duty of the NDA, in carrying out its functions—
(a)
to promote, and to ensure, the maintenance and development in the
United Kingdom of a skilled workforce able to undertake the work of
decommissioning nuclear installations and of cleaning up nuclear sites;
(b)
to promote effective competition for contracts to provide it with the
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services it must secure in order to discharge its responsibilities;
(c)
to secure the adoption of what it considers to be good practice by the
persons with control of designated installations, designated sites and
designated facilities; and
(d)
subject to subsection (1) and to paragraphs (a) to (c) of this subsection,
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to secure value for money in all its dealings with others.
(3)
In the carrying out of its functions with respect to—
(a)
the operation of the installations and facilities designated as
installations or facilities whose operation is to be secured by the NDA,
and
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(b)
the management of designated sites,

the NDA shall have the further duty to act in the manner that it considers is
most beneficial to the public.
(4)
In this section “relevant Government policy” means all current policies
which—
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(a)
relate to the decommissioning of nuclear installations, the cleaning-up
of nuclear sites or other activities in relation to which the NDA has
functions; and
(b)
have been published by or on behalf of Her Majesty’s Government in
the United Kingdom or a devolved administration, have been notified
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to the NDA by the Secretary of State or have been notified both to the
NDA and to the Secretary of State by a devolved administration.
(5)
In subsection (4) “devolved administration” means the Scottish Ministers, the
National Assembly for Wales or a department in Northern Ireland.
(6)
In this Chapter “nuclear security” means the security of each of the following—
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(a)
nuclear installations and nuclear sites;
(b)
hazardous material;
(c)
apparatus and software used or stored in or on a nuclear installation or
nuclear site;
(d)
apparatus and software used in connection with the treatment, storage,
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transportation or disposal of hazardous material;
(e)
sensitive nuclear information.
(7)
In subsection (6) “sensitive nuclear information” means—
(a)
information relating to a treatment of uranium that increases the
proportion of the isotope 235 contained in the uranium;
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(b)
information capable of being used in connection with such a treatment
of uranium;
(c)
information relating to activities carried out in, on or in relation to—
(i)
nuclear installations or nuclear sites, or
(ii)
hazardous material,
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which the NDA has been notified by the Secretary of State is
information that needs to be protected in the interests of national
security; and

Energy Bill [HL]
Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
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(d)
information about nuclear security.
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Powers for carrying out functions
(1)
The NDA shall have power, for the purpose of carrying out its functions, to do
all such things as appear to it to be likely to facilitate the carrying out of its
functions, or to be incidental to carrying them out.
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(2)
The powers of the NDA include, in particular—
(a)
power to operate electricity generating stations;
(b)
power to apply for and hold nuclear site licences, registrations under
section 7 of the 1993 Act and authorisations under sections 13 and 14 of
that Act;
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(c)
power to make grants or loans to persons undertaking activities that
benefit the social or economic life of communities living near
designated installations, designated sites or designated facilities or that
produce other environmental benefits for such communities;
(d)
power to make grants or loans to persons carrying out research into
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matters relating to the decommissioning of nuclear installations, the
cleaning-up of nuclear sites or other activities in relation to which the
NDA has functions;
(e)
power to use its facilities, and facilities on designated sites, for the
carrying out of research on behalf of others into any matter whatever;
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(f)
power to use those facilities for the carrying on of any activities, in
addition to such research, that it considers appropriate for generating
funds for application towards the carrying out of its functions;
(g)
power to delegate to the UKAEA the maintenance of any such scheme
as is referred to in section 11(1)(a) and (b);
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(h)
power itself to do anything that the NDA has a function of securing
others to do;
(i)
power to enter into contracts for others to secure the things that it has a
function of securing;
(j)
power to enter into contracts for others to do anything else that it may
30
do for the purpose of, or in connection with, the carrying out of its
functions;
(k)
power to acquire or establish subsidiaries and to carry out its functions
through subsidiaries.
(3)
The NDA may impose charges in respect of the things that it does or secures in
35
the discharge of its responsibilities—
(a)
on persons with control of installations, sites and facilities in the case of
which it does not have a financial responsibility under section 24; and
(b)
on other persons for whom it does or secures the doing of anything for
which it does not have a financial responsibility under that section.
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(4)
Charges imposed under subsection (3) must not be imposed except—
(a)
in accordance with a direction under section 6; or
(b)
with the approval of the Secretary of State.
(5)
In determining whether to make a grant to the NDA under section 25, and the
amount of any such grant, the Secretary of State shall have regard to the extent
45
to which in his opinion the NDA should make grants and loans under
subsection (2)(c) for the purposes of mitigating any adverse effect of the

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Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
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decommissioning of designated facilities on the social and economic life of
communities living near installations.
Strategies, plans and reports
14
Strategy for carrying out functions
(1)
It shall be the duty of the NDA—
5
(a)
to prepare its strategy for carrying out its functions; and
(b)
from time to time to revise that strategy.
(2)
On the NDA being given a new responsibility for securing the
decommissioning or cleaning-up of an installation or site, it must consider—
(a)
whether the objectives and policy already contained in its current
10
strategy apply in the case of that installation or site in a manner that it
considers appropriate; and
(b)
if it considers that they do not, what revision of its strategy is required.
(3)
Schedule 2 (which makes provision about the preparation and revision of the
NDA’s strategy, about consultation and about the approval and publication of
15
the strategy) has effect.
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Contents of strategy
(1)
The strategy prepared under section 14 must include both—
(a)
the NDA’s strategy for decommissioning and cleaning up the
installations and sites designated as installations or sites to be
20
decommissioned or cleaned up; and
(b)
its strategy for the operation of the installations and facilities
designated as installations or facilities whose operation it is to secure.
(2)
The strategy must set out—
(a)
the priorities the NDA has adopted with respect to the discharge of its
25
responsibilities;
(b)
how it proposes to ensure the maintenance and development in the
United Kingdom of a skilled workforce able to undertake the work of
decommissioning nuclear installations and of cleaning up nuclear sites;
(c)
how it proposes to promote effective competition for contracts to
30
provide it with the services it must secure in order to discharge its
responsibilities;
(d)
its proposals for ensuring the adoption of what it considers to be good
practice by the persons with control of designated installations,
designated sites and designated facilities;
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(e)
how it proposes to give encouragement or other support to activities
that benefit the social or economic life of communities living near
designated installations, designated sites or designated facilities or that
produce other environmental benefits for such communities; and
(f)
an explanation of how and why it arrived at the decisions and
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proposals which are set out in the strategy.
(3)
The strategy must also set out the steps that the NDA proposes to take—
(a)
for giving appropriate publicity to its responsibilities and strategy;

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Part 2 — The Civil Nuclear Industry
Chapter 1 — Nuclear decommissioning
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(b)
for explaining them both to persons having a particular interest in
matters relating to the carrying out by the NDA of its functions and to
the general public;
(c)
for ensuring that the NDA is kept informed at all times of the opinions
about such matters of persons having such a particular interest; and
5
(d)
for facilitating the communication by such persons of their opinions to
the NDA.
(4)
The strategy required by subsection (1)(a) must contain—
(a)
objectives describing what the NDA intends decommissioning or
cleaning-up to achieve in the case of different installations and sites;
10
and
(b)
the NDA’s policy as to the means by which it intends those objectives
to be achieved.
(5)
In the case of a site which is to be cleaned up, those objectives must include, in
particular, a statement of the condition to which the site needs to be restored.
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(6)
In setting out its policy as to the means of achieving the objectives mentioned
in subsection (4), the NDA must describe—
(a)
the procedure it proposes to adopt for ensuring the preparation, and
revision from time to time, of plans for the identification and carrying
out of the decommissioning or cleaning-up work that is or continues to
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be needed in the case of each designated installation or designated site;
(b)
the manner in which it proposes to secure that the work identified by
such plans is carried out in accordance with them;
(c)
an outline of the work that has been identified as needed in the case of
each designated installation or designated site for which plans have
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been prepared;
(d)
the period over which that work is to be carried out in the case of each
installation or site; and
(e)
the expenses it expects to incur in respect of the carrying out of the
decommissioning and cleaning-up work for which it has a
30
responsibility.
(7)
The strategy required by subsection (1)(b) must set out—
(a)
the expenditure that the NDA expects to incur on the running costs of
installations and facilities whose operation it has a responsibility to
secure, and on the management of the sites where they are located;
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(b)
capital expenditure that the NDA expects to incur in connection with
the discharge of its responsibilities in relation to those installations and
facilities, and with the management of those sites; and
(c)
the income that it considers it is likely to secure from the operation of
those installations and facilities and from the management of those
40
sites.
(8)
An objective or policy set out in the NDA’s strategy may be framed in one or
more of the following ways—
(a)
by reference to a particular installation or site;
(b)
by reference to different descriptions of installation or site;
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(c)
so as to become applicable to an installation or site of a particular
description on the NDA being given responsibility for an installation or
site of that description.