Examination of Witnesses (Questions 280-283)
LORD DRAYSON,
MR DAVID
GOULD CB, MR
NICK BENNETT
AND REAR
ADMIRAL ANDREW
MATHEWS
21 NOVEMBER 2006
Q280 John Smith: Are you concerned
about the closure of the physics department at Reading University
which was announced yesterday given the number of recruits you
take?
Lord Drayson: Speaking more generally,
the number of physics departments which have closed in the country
is a concern to us. This country depends upon having a significant
and growing pool of scientists and engineers, physicists, chemists
and so forth, therefore we need to look at the way in which we
encourage young people to want to go into these disciplines and
then make sure that the support is there for them. We have a number
of other sources of physics graduates apart from Reading, but
it is true that we believe it is a pity that the physics department
at Reading has closed. It is not affecting us in a dramatic sense,
but speaking generally, if I may.
Mr Gould: As I understand it,
recently recruitment of physicists has not actually been the main
source of difficulty in recruitment at Aldermaston. Some of their
other disciplines have been more challenging.
Q281 Chairman: What skills are
most at risk and hardest to find? If a civil nuclear programme
is pursued, what will happen to skill retention at Aldermaston?
Mr Bennett: It is interesting
that the most difficult skill we have to recruit at Aldermaston
is actually project management. In terms of managing a significant
infrastructure programme and delivering that to time, bringing
that in has proved something of a challenge and we have covered
that by Aldermaston doing a partnership deal with a project management
specialist company while we continue to try to grow and develop
those skills. Across the rest of the organisation it is actually
extraordinarily healthy and retention rates are significantly
higher than the industry average; a large number of people queuing
up to apply and trying to join the organisation.
Q282 Chairman: Would the civil
nuclear programme drain skills away from Aldermaston?
Mr Gould: There might be some
impact, but actually it is a very different operation. The civil
nuclear programme being run by the power generation companies
will use what is now pretty mature technology: third generation
reactors are mature in terms of their design. We are really talking
about engineering and not the kind of physics which goes on at
Aldermaston. There might be some overlap, some competition for
disciplines, but actually there is not really a great deal of
pull to the civil programme from Aldermaston.
Mr Bennett: We should be clear
that it is not just physicists either. Across the materials and
the computing and other fields a significant number of other engineering
and scientific skills are required, so please do not just focus
on physics.
Q283 Mr Havard: I am trying to
concentrate on the functions it is capable of doing. The question
of what it is doing and what it would be expected to do or not
and how that relates to treaty obligations and other things is
a separate but related set to questions and at some point we do
have to get into that, because we have assertions made that some
of it is not consistent with ... That is not for today. As far
as the actual facility itself and its capabilities and skills
are concerned, we have cleared that issue. You would require it
whether you were doing away with it or developing it.
Mr Bennett: You would.
Lord Drayson: May I make a general
point that it is not just in this area? We are seeing a real pressure
on project management skills. The level of growth taking place
in the country, the projects, major infrastructure projects which
are taking place, things like the Olympics and so forth, are having
an effect in terms of the availability of top level project management
skills which, along with top level systems engineering skills,
are two areas of capability where we need to do more in terms
of the development of numbers of graduates in the country.
Chairman: Thank you very much indeed
for that evidence session; it was most useful. It was most helpful
of the Ministry of Defence to come along and give evidence today.
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