Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 13: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government when the national emergency plan for an accident at the nuclear plant at Sellafield was last tested; his views on whether it should be reviewed in view of the recent dramatic presentation of such an accident and its consequences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16518/06]

Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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Question 38: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on whether the recent RTÉ drama, Fallout, represents an accurate picture of the likely effect of a major explosion at the Sellafield plant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16612/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 13 and 38 together.

The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII), which is the national authority with responsibility for advising the Government on all matters relating to nuclear safety and the hazards associated with ionising radiation, has advised that the scenario depicted in the RTE drama, Fallout, is not realistic and greatly exaggerates the amount of radioactivity that could reach Ireland.

The RPII was particularly concerned that the drama appeared to suggest that evacuation of Dublin would be the appropriate response to an accident at Sellafield. Under the Government's National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents, it is not considered that an accident at a nuclear installation abroad would give rise to the need for evacuation of people in Ireland. International best practice indicates that evacuation is only ever recommended to prevent people suffering immediate health effects. In Ireland, due to our distance from any nuclear facilities and the type of accident that could possibly occur, radiation levels arising from an accident at such facilities would never be sufficiently high to give rise to these effects.

As I have indicated, the Irish Government has in place a National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents designed to respond to a major emergency at a nuclear installation in the UK or elsewhere that could result in radioactive contamination reaching Ireland. The Plan conforms to best international standards and practice as established by the International Atomic Energy Agency. It is continuously reviewed and updated in the light of technological, scientific and medical advancements. Furthermore, a major exercise of the Plan takes place every few years in order to test its effectiveness and to enhance emergency preparedness. The most recent exercise in 2005, called "INEX 3", was carried out under the guidance of the OECD's Nuclear Energy Agency. This exercise was mainly concerned with testing decision making in relation to agricultural countermeasures and food restrictions following a simulated nuclear accident in the UK. A report on this exercise will be published in due course.

In addition to these major tests, aspects of the Plan are tested on a more frequent basis. For example, communications with the European Commission notification centre are tested daily.

An information booklet entitled National Planning for Nuclear Emergencies, setting out the principal features of the Plan, was produced and circulated by my Department in 2002 to over 400 public information centres throughout Ireland, i.e. libraries and Citizens' Information Centres. The most up to date version of the Booklet is dated December 2005 and is available on my Department's website at www.environ.ie, and on that of the RPII at www.rpii.ie. An information leaflet, summarising the main elements of the Booklet, was also distributed to every household in the country in 2002. This information leaflet has also been recently updated and is available on my Department's website; it is currently being printed and will also be available shortly through Libraries and Citizens' Information Centres.

Given the continuous review, updating and regular testing of the Plan and the international assistance that would be available under the international Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency, I am satisfied that the Plan is robust and that the country is ready to respond effectively to any such accident or emergency.