Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 108: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will report to Dáil Éireann on the meeting which he held with the British Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on 19 October 2005; the discussion he had in relation to Sellafield and if any agreements were reached that will further the campaign to bring about the closure of Sellafield. [30318/05]

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 124: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on his recent meeting with the British Government regarding Sellafield. [30399/05]

Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 177: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will report on his meeting with the British Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Mr. Alan Johnson; if he made him aware of the views of the Irish people at the undetected leak for nine months of 83,000 litres of radioactive material containing 20 tonnes of uranium and plutonium; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30294/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 108, 124 and 177 together.

I met the British Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Mr. Alan Johnson, in London on 19 October. The meeting focused on the THORP incident and on issues regarding the continued operation of the Sellafield plant. While our meeting was cordial, there was an extremely frank exchange of views.

I made very clear to the Secretary of State, the Government's serious concern about the fact that the THORP incident of last April had occurred at all. I strongly underlined our concern about the findings of BNFL's own report in regard to the culture of complacency at Sellafield. The THORP leak represented another chapter in the ongoing Sellafield cycle of failure. This pattern is untenable and the Secretary of State was left in no doubt about our view that it is time for the UK to face up to and make the hard decisions necessary to end reprocessing.

The Secretary of State confirmed to me that the UK Government is undertaking a review of the THORP plant with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, which assumed responsibility for the Sellafield site and operations in April 2005, following this year's serious incident. While I welcomed this development, I conveyed in the strongest possible terms the view of the Irish Government that reprocessing should be brought to an end. Reprocessing is unwelcome, environmentally untenable and compromises safety and security on both sides of the Irish Sea. Any review of THORP should encompass not only economic, but also safety, security and environmental considerations. The Secretary of State also informed me that there were no new contracts in place for the THORP facility and that it was expected that all reprocessing at the plant would cease in 2010. If this position holds, as I hope it will, it will represent a very positive outcome, although the operation of the THORP facility is only one of our concerns about the Sellafield operation.

I also made it known to the Secretary of State that I had again raised the issue of the THORP leak with the European Commissioner for Energy, Mr. Andris Piebalgs. EU safeguards and controls at Sellafield are conducted under the terms of the EURATOM Treaty. In my most recent letter I have pressed the Commissioner to reflect on the implications of the THORP leak for the conduct and effectiveness of the safeguards regime and to respond appropriately. I look forward to hearing from the Commissioner on this important matter at an early date. It is clear that the recent incident at the THORP plant has prompted a serious review of the operation of the plant and it remains to be seen if it will reopen.

I also raised the issue of security at Sellafield and both the Secretary of State and myself noted the improved co-operation and information sharing which the two Governments put in place over the past year arising out of the international legal actions which Ireland has pursued.

I have little doubt that the current legal and diplomatic initiative by the Government in relation to Sellafield has resulted in increasing recognition by the UK Government and its agencies of the priority accorded to the issue of Sellafield by the Irish Government. I am confident that my meeting with Secretary of State Johnson served to again highlight the Government's concerns and reiterate our ongoing commitment to securing the safe closure of the Sellafield plant.