Nuclear

Since entering government, the Labour Party has demonstrated a laser focus on delivering its mission of 100 per cent clean power by 2030, reforming planning laws for onshore wind, raising the CfD AR6 budget, and introducing legislation to establish Great British Energy (GBE). With the UK’s future nuclear reactors, including Hinkley Point C, only due to come online in the 2030s, nuclear energy does not fit neatly into Labour’s clean power mission. This raises an important question about Labour’s agenda: will the Party pursue nuclear energy with the same level of ambition that it is demonstrating for other technologies? Below, the Brevia Nuclear team explores some of the key areas where Labour could provide greater certainty to the nuclear sector.

The UK Government’s target of deploying 24GW of nuclear generation capacity by 2050 confirms the key role it sees nuclear playing in the UK’s net zero transition. However, it is nearly 30 years since the most recent plant, Sizewell B, came online and Hinkley Point C will not be generating electricity until at least 2029. A significant step change is required.