N-sub work 'would be low risk'

PLANS to scrap nuclear submarines at a Westcountry dockyard would not compromise the safety of workers or the public, Ministry of Defence officials said last night.

A spokesman for the MoD, speaking at a meeting to discuss the controversial Submarine Dismantling Project (SDP) in Plymouth, said: "The primary aim of the SDP is to develop a safe method for dismantling submarines.

"We will not compromise the safety of either workers or the general public to do this. The radiological risk to the general public from activities at Devonport is already extremely low, and would remain extremely low if it was decided to carry out SDP activities. There is absolutely no reason to believe that this would lead to any increased risk to the public."

Politicians and Plymouth City Council vowed to fight for what's best for the city over the plans after meeting with the MoD yesterday.

The SDP could see 27 de-fuelled nuclear subs stored and cut up at Devonport naval base over the next 60 years.

The meeting was the first stage of a consultation process, which over two years should be widened out to the public. During this time, the MoD will consider 12 sites for the storage element of the work and just two, including Plymouth, for the more controversial dismantling work.

South West Devon MP Gary Streeter said: "What we've got to do as a city is fight our corner and put our case forward. Although this meeting was helpful, it did not remove my profound reservations about this activity coming to Plymouth.

"If we're trying to push for a 'green' and 'marine' city, this work clashes with that image. We're trying to get away from over-dependency on the dockyard."

City council leader Vivien Pengelly said: "I remain very concerned about the potential impact of nuclear dismantling on Plymouth. It would be totally counter to Plymouth's growth strategy and would adversely impact upon on the economic regeneration of the city.

"I am equally as concerned that it would seriously affect our neighbours and the image of the South West in general and we will now be contacting colleagues to seek their views."

The meeting explained technical aspects of what the nuclear dismantling and storage work would involve.

Alison Seabeck, MP for Devonport, agreed that the briefing made it clear the SDP work would be safer than work that had previously been carried out in the dockyard.

She said: "They told us the work would be less risky than that currently taking place. My main concern is that the people of Plymouth are fully informed every step of the way and that the process is transparent."

Plymouth Sutton MP Linda Gilroy said as long as the safety regulators had thoroughly "sieved through" the proposals, the dismantling would not be a problem. "I don't think we should stop doing what we're already good at. We have a high level of skills in the nuclear field and this project is said to be safer than the work already carried out in the dockyard."

A spokesman for the MoD said: "We will consult widely on the location of and process for initial dismantling of submarines and storage of the resultant nuclear materials."

An announcement on preferred locations for the decommissioning project is expected in 2010.