Energy Bill

I welcome the Minister's intention of clarifying the issue, although I think that some of his explanations made it slightly more complicated than it needed to be, particularly his reply to the question from the right hon. Member for Scunthorpe (Mr. Morley). It is vital for taxpayers to know how their interests will be protected, and essential for the companies that are potential investors in new-build nuclear to know exactly what costs they will face before embarking on their investment plans. We need absolute clarity on that issue, because, as both we and the Government have said, we must ensure that there is no public subsidy for new-build nuclear. Our position is clear: we are happy for companies to invest in new-build nuclear as long as there is no subsidy, and as long as they are responsible for the full costs of decommissioning and the full long-term costs of disposal of spent fuel and waste. We think that, in return, they should be given a level playing field when it comes to sorting out the planning problems that they have faced in the past, although we do not agree with the Government about the total loss of local democracy in the measures proposed in the Planning Bill. We think that there should be site and type approval, so that two of the biggest issues that have delayed developments in the past—the precise type and the precise location of reactors—can be excluded from the debate. We are also keen to reassure investors that any change of Government will not pose a threat to their investments, or fundamentally change the ground rules for the investments that they have been considering. We consider it absolutely right for us to work with the Government to ensure that the right system is introduced. We are pleased that the new clause gives those who develop new-build nuclear programmes full responsibility for storing the waste on site for a considerable period, potentially as much as 100 years, and for paying their fair share of the long-term disposal costs and some of the infrastructure costs of building nuclear facilities. We also accept the notion of a flat fee and a risk premium, but here the Minister started to make things a little more complicated. The right hon. Member for Scunthorpe asked whether there would be a ceiling for the premium. My understanding is that there will be a fixed cost but also a fixed element that is the risk premium, which means that if the amount is lower than the ceiling, companies will still pay the full fixed premium. In other words, the ceiling is not flexible. We need much more detail. We know that it cannot be given to us today, but it will be important to our future considerations. Will the fee ultimately be based on the volume of nuclear waste alone, and if so, will it reflect the balance between high-level and intermediate-level waste? Will it take account of radioactivity levels? The extent to which waste needs to be encased may differ according to the level of radioactivity. Building-cost inflation is higher than inflation in general; how will the fee take account of that? When does the Minister think the repository will be built? What is his best guess? He said that it was difficult to be precise, but we are not asking for precision. Are we looking at three, five, eight or 10 decades? At what point does he think the site for the repository will be identified and earmarked for further investigation? There is a fear that not enough progress has been made in that regard. Does he think that a single repository will be sufficient for the disposal of both legacy waste and all waste from a new-build programme? The Secretary of State said recently that he thought there might be twice as much nuclear power in a few years' time. Does the Minister believe that, in the event of a massive expansion of nuclear power, all the waste could be incorporated in a single facility, or does he think that we might need two? That would involve huge additional infrastructure costs, which would need to be taken into account. The Minister explained about lower costs, and said that there would be no repayment of the risk premium. If it becomes clear that the Government miscalculated, that the cost of building a repository will be much greater than they estimated and that the cost will therefore be greater than the total amount charged to the nuclear companies, including the risk premium, will there be any scope for the Government to tell the companies, ““We suggested this amount in good faith but we got it wrong, so a supplementary charge will be necessary””? I know that the Government are acting in good faith, but they may end up subsidising the nuclear waste disposal regime, and I know that that is not their intention.