Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Sargent for allowing me to take this matter on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

I understand the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, British Nuclear Fuels plc and Urenco (Capenhurst) Limited today published details of the nuclear materials balance arising from the use of plutonium and-or uranium in their civil nuclear programmes during 2003 and 2004. Publication of these figures is a voluntary industry practice in the UK introduced in 1977 and repeated annually. On 10 December last, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, together with the British ambassador, announced the outcome to date of the discussions between the UK and Ireland arising from the legal action brought by Ireland against the UK under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The Minister, Deputy Roche, reported previously to the House on the improved co-operation and information exchange mechanisms put in place arising from these discussions. In accordance with these improved co-operation measures, the Minister directed his officials to raise this matter with the UK authorities to establish the position regarding media reports to the effect that 30 kg of plutonium material had been "lost" or had "disappeared" at Sellafield. Arising from these contacts with the UK Administration, the Minister understands that in the figures published, 30 kg of plutonium has been attributed as "material unaccounted for". This term represents the difference between measured stock and the book account. It arises as a consequence of the accounting process for these nuclear materials and mainly from measurement uncertainties.

The Minister received assurances from the UK Government that the figures in this case relate to a "book" discrepancy arising from measurement uncertainties and that there is no evidence to suggest that any of the apparent losses reported are real losses of nuclear material. Apparently, it is not unusual for the accounting process to indicate material unaccounted for and it can have a positive or negative value. The figures published today relate to 2003 and 2004 and have all long since been reported to EURATOM and the International Atomic Energy Agency under the UK's various nuclear safeguards obligations. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Roche, understands that the figures returned are not the subject of further inquiry by these bodies and that they are all within international standards of expected measurement accuracies for closing a nuclear balance at the type of facility concerned. The British Government does not believe the figures have any implications for the state of security at Sellafield and there is no suggestion that any of this material is unaccounted for because of theft or anything else to do with site or transport security.

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