The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament has responded to the revelation of emails showing a deep level of collusion between the Government and the nuclear industry to downplay the impact of the Fukushima disaster . CND commented that it believes that the Department for Energy & Climate Change is more interested in spinning to boost the nuclear industry than in allowing debate based on the facts.
Kate Hudson, General Secretary of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said “This shocking level of collusion shows that the government is not just willing, but actively wants, to do the industry’s dirty work for them. Nuclear power has a bad name precisely because of terrible accidents like Fukushima – something that no amount of PR work and spin can hide. These emails seem to show that the government’s first response has been to play down the crisis, regardless of the facts. Sadly, this is the same ideologically pro-nuclear position that avoids addressing safety concerns at plants. And it also shockingly dismisses the ongoing health impact on people living nearby.
“The example of Germany shows that where governments listen to their people, we can rid ourselves of this dirty, dangerous and expensive technology. The UK government must learn from Berlin and base our future energy supplies on genuinely green technologies.”
In the aftermath of Fukushima, over 1500 CND supporters emailed Energy Secretary Chris Huhne calling for a reconsideration of the go-ahead for new nuclear power in the UK and for the government to follow the example of Germany, Switzerland and China in suspending their programmes. In response, Chris Huhne boasted that “the UK has a mature and transparent regulatory system” . This assertion looks ever more doubtful now it has been revealed that his Department was engaging in a PR battle to ‘ensure the anti-nuclear chaps and chapesses do not gain ground on this’ when little was known for certain about the implications of the Fukushima disaster.
For further information and interviews please contact CND’s Press Officer on 020 7700 2350 or 07968 420859.