A Tangled Web

Sticking-Up for Sellafield



Arthur Morgan, ex-terrorist and now Sinn Fein politician (huh, surprise me!) is demanding the closure of Sellafield nuclear power station in Cumbria. Sinn Fein and the SDLP (along with other principal representatives of Irish nationalism) have long demanded the closure of Sellafield, notwithstanding the fact that, save for the fire of 1957, the station has an unblemished record of safety and diligence.



I am a great fan of the nuclear industry. It goes a long way towards lessening the demand for fossil fuels currently exacerbating the problems with global warming. BNFL, the government-owned company which operates Sellafield, is one of the most tightly regulated organisations in the industrialised world. It runs sites in Britain, the US, eastern Europe and China, possessing an excellent reputation for its employees and the public alike.

Sellafield is located near the village of Seascale in west Cumbria. It is one of England's remotest and poorest regions. The two main towns, Whitehaven and Workington, have above average unemployment and the region is still reeling from the collapse of the coal mining industry in the 1980's. Over 25,000 jobs depend directly and indirectly on the sustainability of Sellafield. Its closure would have a devastating impact on the local economy and the communities depending on it. That, of course, cuts no ice with the pernicious Republic of Ireland-based 'Shut Sellafied' cronies. I believe their oppostion to Sellafield is environmentally groundless and rooted as much in tradtional anti-Britishness as in a supposed concern for their welfare. You see, they live in a country blessed with copious amounts of EU largesse - an advantage rarely afforded to the depressed areas of Cumbria. If they and their government really wish to destroy the livelihoods of 25,000 people, let them redirect some of that EU munificence into the pockets of those Cumbrians who would suffer the consequences of such a move.