Government’s Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce launches call for evidence

The mandate of the taskforce, in the Government’s own words, is to “examine all aspects of the regulation of civil and defence nuclear. It will explore how the regulation of safety, environmental, planning, and other relevant areas can be improved, with the aim of supporting energy security, national security, and economic growth in the UK […] It will also explore better international alignment so reactor designs approved abroad could be green lit quicker, minimising expensive changes.” The Taskforce will report directly to the Prime Minister. We understand that the plan is for the taskforce to produce an interim report in 3 months’ time. and final report in 6 months’ time (just 3 months’ after the interim report).

This is a historic opportunity for progressive improvements to the regulatory framework across the whole sector, and in particular to aid the deployment of new capacity. We understand that the Prime Minister’s team and the Chancellor’s team are particularly interested in the outcomes of the taskforce, as they look for non-fiscal means to stimulate economic growth and build energy security.

Given that, we strongly urge all members who are able to submit to the taskforce and to encourage independent experts and academics to do likewise. DESNZ has asked that respondents “send a short summary (maximum 2 pages) of your responses to the points above to [email protected] or respond to the questions online here.

The NIA will engage at the highest level with the taskforce. As you will know, the NIA convened its own member-led taskforce last year and produced a series of detailed recommendations to Government, which has played a part in the Government forming its own body. Our principle is that nuclear power plants should be regulated proportionately to the risks they create and the benefits they bring, equitably with other high hazard industries, and consistently with the standards of UK government appraisals and evaluation processes. One main recommendation we will press is that the wider benefits of nuclear – energy security, environmental sustainability, and economic development – must be incorporated into regulatory decisions.

Please contact NIA Director of Policy and External Affairs Lincoln Hill at [email protected] for more information on the NIA’s recommendations and plans and for advice on how to engage with the Taskforce.

Taskforce members

John Fingleton – Taskforce Lead

John is an Irish-British economist and former CEO of the Office of Fair Trading, he was a Senior Independent Member of the Council of Innovate UK until 2024, as well as a Member of Board for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) from 2021 to 2024. John runs a company advising and supporting clients to successful resolution of complex and novel regulatory problems. He has a profile across a wide range of business sectors and is considered an expert in business, government and regulation, with a reputation for innovative thinking.

Professor Andrew Sherry

Andrew is Professor of Materials and Structures at the Henry Royce Institute for Advanced Materials at the University of Manchester. He has experience leading science and innovation, skills development, and infrastructure programmes across industry, national laboratories and academia. He was previously Chief Scientist and Special Advisor at the UK’s National Nuclear Laboratory. He was also previously Chair of the Defence Nuclear Safety Committee, providing independent advice to the Secretary of State for Defence. In that role he was known for his ability to offer clear and pragmatic solutions to complex problems.

Mark Bassett

Mark is a member of the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group (INSAG) and recently retired from the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) after 8 years where he was a Director and the Special Assistant to the Director General (DG) for Nuclear Safety, Security and Safeguards. His role included dealing with, and providing advice to the DG on, a very wide range of complex technical, diplomatic, and political matters in these areas. He has held senior leadership roles in the nuclear sector in the UK public and private sectors, as well as the international civil service, and was DCI (Deputy Chief Nuclear Inspector) at the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) for a number of years with over two decades in ONR where he held a wide range of roles across all nuclear sectors, both civil and defence.

Dame Sue Ion

Sue is a British engineer and an expert advisor on the nuclear power industry with a career spanning 45 years. She was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2012 for contributions to nuclear fuel development. She is a strong advocate for nuclear power and has a background advising government about nuclear reactors and countering the negativity caused by incidents such as at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. As technical director of BNFL, Sue held a seat on Tony Blair’s Council for Science and Technology and has been credited with persuading Blair to change Labour’s official government policy on nuclear power. Sue supports the development of smaller, modular versions of nuclear reactors for their economy of size, portability and cost.

Mustafa Latif-Aramesh

Mustafa is a leading infrastructure planning lawyer, and Parliamentary Agent. He has advised on numerous small modular and advanced nuclear developments in the UK, advised on over 25 nationally significant infrastructure projects and has advised central government on infrastructure planning and regulatory reforms, including on the recent Infrastructure Planning Bill. He is authorised by Parliament to draft and promote legislation.