With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to make a statement on the proposed Wylfa Newydd nuclear power plant.

Britain was the world’s first civil nuclear nation, and nuclear energy has powered homes and businesses in this country for over 60 years and currently provides around 20% of our electricity needs with low carbon, secure and reliable baseload power.

Nuclear has an important role to play in the UK’s energy future as we transition to the low carbon economy. However, we have always been clear that no technology will be pursued at any price: new nuclear must provide value for money for consumers and taxpayers.

In 2016, we agreed to support the first new nuclear power station in a generation at Hinkley Point C in Somerset. Developers have set out proposals for a further five plants to come online over the next few decades. As I said at the time the contract for Hinkley Point C was agreed, the Government expects future nuclear projects to provide lower cost electricity than Hinkley Point C.

The next project in this pipeline is the proposed Wylfa Newydd power station, based on Anglesey in North Wales. The project developers Horizon Nuclear Power, who are owned by the Japanese company Hitachi, have developed proposals to build two reactors with a combined capacity of 2.9GW. Hitachi’s reactor design has been deployed on time and on budget in Japan, and last December completed the Generic Design Assessment process run by the UK’s independent nuclear regulator, having satisfied our strict safety standards. Horizon submitted their application for Development Consent to the Planning Inspectorate last Friday.

I am pleased to confirm that today Hitachi and the UK Government have decided to enter into negotiations in relation to the proposed Wylfa Newydd project. This is an important next step for the project, although no decision has been yet taken to proceed, and the successful conclusion of these negotiations will of course be subject to full Government, regulatory and other approvals, including but not limited to value for money, due diligence and State Aid requirements.

A key focus of discussions with Hitachi has been – and will continue to be – achieving lower cost electricity for consumers. Both the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee have recommended that the Government consider variations from the Hinkley Point C financing model in order to reduce costs to consumers.
In line with the NAO and PAC’s clear findings and recommendations, for this project the Government will be considering direct investment alongside Hitachi, and the Japanese Government agencies and other parties. Our partnership on this project would serve as a further example of civil nuclear collaboration between the UK and Japan, building on the Memorandum of Co-operation that was signed in 2016 with that country.

The UK is likely to need significant new nuclear capacity in order to meet our carbon reduction commitments at least cost, particularly as we electrify more of our transport and heating. So alongside entering negotiations in relation to Wylfa Newydd, the Government will also continue to engage with the other developers in the UK new nuclear market on their proposals for further projects. This currently includes EDF over their plans for a follow-on EPR project at Sizewell C, CGN over their proposals for an HPR1000 reactor at Bradwell, and Toshiba regarding the future of the NuGen project at Moorside, as well as Hitachi over potential further ABWR units at Wylfa and Oldbury.

It remains the Government’s objective in the longer term that new nuclear projects like other energy infrastructure should be financed by the private sector, and so alongside our discussions with developers we will be reviewing the viability of a regulated asset base model as a sustainable funding model based on private finance for future projects beyond Wylfa, which could deliver the Government’s objectives in terms of value for money, fiscal responsibility and decarbonisation.

Support for nuclear is reiterated in the Nuclear Sector Deal which we will publish with the sector shortly. That deal, which the Government has developed in close partnership with the nuclear sector, will also include ambitious proposals to drive down costs across the sector, including by reducing the cost of construction in new build and by investing in innovation in advanced nuclear technologies.

If the Wylfa project were to go forward following this period of negotiation, it would provide around 6% of our current electricity needs until nearly the end of the century, whilst supporting thousands of jobs during construction and operation, particularly in Wales.

The actions this Government is taking will support a long-term pipeline for new nuclear projects in this country, and will provide the visibility needed to enable the industry to invest in the skills – including through the National Nuclear College– and the UK supply chain capabilities across the country. I will continue to keep the House informed during the negotiations.

A Downing Street spokesperson said:

This afternoon the Prime Minister chaired the latest meeting of her Business Advisory Council at Downing Street.

The Prime Minister, the Chancellor and the Business Secretary opened the roundtable by updating on the Modern Industrial Strategy following strong support at the last meeting in March.

The business leaders gave their support for recent announcements, including the PM’s speech on science at Jodrell Bank Observatory last month. This speech set out four ‘missions’ associated with each of the Industrial Strategy’s four Grand Challenges – future of mobility, healthy ageing, AI, and clean growth. These missions will galvanise public and private sector investment in the development and dissemination of new solutions to global problems, positioning the UK at the forefront of the industries of the future.

The Prime Minister then provided an update on the negotiations with the EU alongside the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, setting out plans to provide greater detail of the Future Relationship in a White Paper due to be published shortly. The business representatives expressed their support for this approach, which will build on information provided through the Prime Minister’s various speeches.

Finally, the Prime Minister invited the International Trade Secretary to discuss foreign investment into the UK and the opportunities and actions that Government and business should take to grow this in the coming years.

The meeting was also attended by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, Business Secretary, Greg Clark, the Brexit Secretary, David Davis and the Trade Secretary, Liam Fox.

Attendees

• Emma Walmsley, CEO, GlaxoSmithKline
• Jacqueline de Rojas CBE, techUK President
• Dave Lewis, Group Chief Executive, Tesco PLC
• Sacha Romanovitch, CEO, Grant Thornton UK LLP
• Robert Noel, Chief Executive, Landsec
  * Gavin Patterson, Chief Executive, BT Group PLC
  * Leo Quinn, Group Chief Executive, Balfour Beatty
  * Sir Roger Carr, Chairman, BAE Systems PLC
  * Dr Andy Palmer CMG, President & CEO, Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd
  * Dame Helena Morrissey CBE, Head of Personal Investing, Legal & General Investment Management
  * Paul Drechsler, President, CBI
  * Stephen Martin, Director General, Institute of Directors
  * Sir Gerry Grimstone, Chair, Standard Life Aberdeen PLC

The update provides information on progress contacting the women concerned and arranging screening for those who have requested it. The statement also provides an update on the numbers of women affected and includes the terms of reference for the independent review.

In response to the statement, Duncan Selbie, Chief Executive of Public Health England, said:

Our priority throughout has been the wellbeing of affected women and giving them the support they need.

I would like to reiterate our heartfelt and unreserved apology that this has happened. We welcome the terms of reference of the independent review and we will work fully with them to ensure it cannot happen again.

As we move towards becoming a fully fledged environmental restoration company, World Environment Day gives us the opportunity to highlight the practical things we all can do to help.

Millions of us watched the unflinching pictures of the impact plastic waste is having on the world’s oceans in the BBC’s ‘Blue Planet II’.

Sir David Attenborough and team highlighted the avoidable waste and single-use plastic in our seas that is damaging the environment.

Calum Jack, graduate environmental advisor, Sellafield Ltd said:

The sight of a sperm whale trying to eat a plastic bucket is a devastating one and made me take a look at what I can do to make changes and reduce my plastic use.

Simple things I’m doing are buying loose fruit and veg instead of packaged produce, using bars of soap and shampoo instead of those in plastic containers, putting my sandwiches in a Tupperware container instead of wrapping them in cling film, getting my milk delivered in reusable glass bottles as opposed to buying plastic bottles, no longer using disposable razors.

And the call is for us all to consider our impact on the environment for this year’s World Environment Day (5 June) and World Ocean Day (8 June) as the theme for 2018 is beating plastic pollution.

There are more than 10,000 employees working directly for Sellafield, thousands more as contractors and in our supply chain. Just each of us making a small difference could have a huge impact.

We have become over reliant on single-use or disposable plastic with severe environmental consequences.

Did you know?

• around the world 1 million plastic drinking bottles are purchased every minute
• 500 billion disposable plastic bags are used worldwide every year
• 50% of the plastic we use is single use

World Oceans Day aims for us to work together to protect and conserve our shared oceans. The theme of plastic pollution continues:

• every year up to 13 million tons of plastic leak into our oceans
• the plastic that ends up in the oceans can circle the Earth four times in a single year and it can persist for up to 1,000 years before it fully disintegrates
• plastic also makes its way into our water supply and thus into our bodies.

The challenge is on for us all to do something to help take care of the environment. It can be at a local, national or global level; and be a team effort or solo contribution.

What can you do?

Here are some ideas:

• reduce your use of single-use plastics: Refuse any single-use plastics that you don’t need such as bags, straws, cutlery, and cups. Instead take with you reusable versions of those products when possible.
• recycle: Use the recycling bins provided at work and the council provided recycling boxes to segregate and recycle waste at home
• participate: Consider helping with organised litter picks or beach clean ups
• spread the word: Stay informed on environment issues and challenge others to be a part of the solution

During a visit to Glasgow, Scottish Secretary David Mundell visited the Glasgow School of Art to see some of the work from graduating students across the School of Design, School of Fine Art, Innovation School and the Mackintosh School of Architecture.

Among the projects on view was a touching illustrated book by Communication Design student Kaitlin Mechan. The book depicts the story of her grandfather’s experiences in the 51st Highland Division, who were captured by the German army at St Valery in 2014 and then held as Prisoners of War for 5 years.

In advance of the formal reopening in 2019, Scottish Secretary David Mundell also had the opportunity to see the restoration work of the iconic Mackintosh building which was almost completely destroyed in a 2014 fire. The UK Government recognises the importance of the Mackintosh building to the Glasgow School of Art as well as to the whole of Scotland, having contributed £10M in funding to the restoration project.

Secretary of State for Scotland David Mundell said:

I was pleased to visit the Glasgow School of Art and see the opening of the Degree Show 2018, and meet with the students behind the art to hear about their briefs and how the scenery of Scotland inspired their work.

I was encouraged by the stage of the restoration works at the Mackintosh building, which the UK Government supported with £10M in funding. I look forward to seeing it again when fully open.