Greens consider u-turn on opposing nuclear power – Daily Business

Torness has had its lifeline extended to 2030

The Scottish Greens could be about to drop their opposition to nuclear power and accept it as part of a net zero strategy.

In what would be one of the biggest political u-turns in the Scottish parliament, the party will debate a motion at its conference this weekend to adopt a “more nuanced” position towards nuclear energy.

Accepting the new position would align the Scottish Greens with the Green Party of England and Wales, which voted at its autumn conference this month to end its own long-standing opposition to nuclear facilities.

Should the policy be accepted it would leave the SNP as the only party in Scotland opposed to nuclear power and make it easier to achieve the necessary planning permission for new plants. The Labour government in Westminster, supported by opposition parties, wants to see nuclear energy expanded across the UK.

The motion states: “We will support the construction of nuclear power stations provided that they are passively safe and do not produce large quantities of nuclear waste.

“We would support an extension of life in Torness if approved by the Office of Nuclear Regulation, provided doing so does not increase risks above current levels.”

Any nuclear stations would be built “only if the local community where the facility is to be built supports it.”

The motion adds that the party should support research and the construction of nuclear waste recycling facilities as well as better management options for nuclear waste.

However, several members have told The Times that they do not expect the motion to be passed. Ross Greer, the Scottish Greens co-leader, has already indicated his opposition to a change in the party’s stance on nuclear power and in a radio interview, he said: “I will certainly be voting to maintain our party’s current policy position.

“Nuclear power is unbelievably expensive, it takes far too long to bring online, and there are serious issues around the security risk caused by the waste from it, in particular.

“Here in Scotland we have won the geographical lottery. We have a huge abundance of renewable energy that we can bring online very quickly, it’s very cheap to generate and it creates a huge number of jobs. There is no need at all for new nuclear in Scotland.”

Andrew Bowie, the Conservatives’ shadow energy secretary, announced earlier this month that a Tory government would bring in a law to ensure “no part of Great Britain misses out on plans for new nuclear renewal”.

Scottish Labour’s new leader Michael Marra called on John Swinney to reverse the SNP’s opposition to new nuclear power.

The EU explicitly includes advanced nuclear technologies and small modular reactors (SMRs) as key net-zero strategic technologies. Almost a quarter of electricity in the EU is produced from nuclear sources.

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