Memorandum submitted by the Stop Hinkley
Campaign
I am writing on behalf of the Stop Hinkley campaign
to express our concern about the abbreviated consideration which
the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee appears to be giving
to the revised Energy National Policy Statements published by
DECC in October. As I understand it you are only proposing to
hear evidence from a single government minister.
As the main local organisation concerned about the
proposal for a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point in Somerset,
our concern is primarily about the Nuclear NPS (EN-6) and those
sections of the Overarching Energy NPS (EN-1) which relate to
it. We are particularly concerned that the poor level of public
engagement experienced when the first energy NPS's were issued—over
the winter of 2009-10—is likely to be repeated this time
round.
Despite the fact that eight specific locations for
proposed nuclear power stations are listed in EN-6, there has
been no publicly advertised meeting in the vicinity of Hinkley
Point at which local people can raise their concerns about the
revised documents. This was one of the issues which my colleague
Jim Duffy raised in the evidence he gave to the ECC in early 2010
during its previous hearings on the original NPS's (see www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmselect/cmenergy/memo/nps/m3902.htm).
As I am sure you are aware, these Policy Statements
are important documents which will set the parameters for consideration
of all major energy infrastructure proposals by the Infrastructure
Planning Commission. On behalf of the Stop Hinkley campaign I
would therefore urge the Committee to hear a full spectrum of
evidence from stakeholders on the revised NPS's, especially the
nuclear-related issues which have already attracted the most interest.
November 2010
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