The Ministry of Defence has been criticised in a newly released report from the Public Accounts Committee for their failure to decommission old nuclear submarines , creating an “unacceptable and unnecessary problem.” The report criticised the “glacial pace” of decommissiong the submarines and highlighted the “extortionate storage and maintenance costs which are now costing the taxpayer £30 million per year.”
This follows on from a report released by the National Audit Office in April criticising the Ministry of Defence’s response to the submarine decommissioning and highlighting that £500million had already been spent on maintaining and disposing of the subs, with a predicted £7.5 billion needed to continue to maintain and store them.
Kate Hudson, General Secretary of CND, said:
“This is a multifaceted crisis – not only the extortionate costs to the taxpayer and the snail’s pace of progress, but the health and safety issues – the radiation dangers posed by key elements of these nuclear subs. It’s high time the government takes action to deal with this festering problem – and takes the decision to dispense with nuclear altogether. There is no safe storage for radioactive nuclear waste and all life forms will ultimately pay the price.”