Sellafield could leak radioactive water until 2050s, MPs warn
The MSSS, which the NDA described as "the most hazardous building in the UK", has been leaking radioactive water into the ground since 2018, releasing enough to fill an Olympic swimming pool every three years.It is likely to continue leaking until the oldest section of the building has been emptied in the 2050s, about a decade later than previously expected.Sir Geoffrey said: "As with the fight against climate change, the sheer scale of the hundred-year timeframe of the decommissioning project makes it hard to grasp the immediacy of safety hazards and cost overruns that delays can have."Every day at Sellafield is a race against time to complete works before buildings reach the end of their life. "Our report contains too many signs that this is a race that Sellafield risks losing."
Pointing to the fact that Sellafield Ltd had missed most of its annual targets for retrieving waste from buildings, including the MSSS, the committee warned: "The consequence of this underperformance is that the buildings are likely to remain extremely hazardous for longer."A spokeswoman for the NDA said the "leak in the Magnox Swarf Storage Silo is contained and does not pose a risk to the public". "Regulators accept that the current plan to tackle the leak is the most effective one."
'False dawn'
Sir Geoffrey said it was of "vital importance that the government grasp the daily urgency of the work taking place at Sellafield and shed any sense of a far-off date of completion for which no-one currently living is responsible"."Sellafield's risks and challenges are those of the present day."There are some early indications of some improvement in Sellafield's delivery, which our report notes. "The government must do far more to hold all involved immediately accountable to ensure these do not represent a false dawn, and to better safeguard both the public purse and the public itself."
Sellafield ceased generating electricity in 2003 and, in addition to work cleaning up the site, now processes and stores nuclear waste from power plants around the UK.The government plans to create an underground geological disposal facility (GDF) to store nuclear waste for the thousands of years it will take to become safe.But the committee said delays in creating the GDF, which is now not expected to be complete until the late 2050s, meant more costs for Sellafield.NDA chief executive David Peattie said it welcomed the report, adding it took the "findings seriously and the safety of the site and the wellbeing of our people will always be our highest priorities"."We are pleased they recognise improvements in delivering major projects and that we are safely retrieving waste from all four highest hazard facilities."
The PAC expressed concern there was a "sub-optimal culture" at Sellafield and called on the NDA to publish information about the prevalence and perception of bullying in its annual report.The NDA spokeswoman said: "We're committed to an open and respectful culture and we've taken decisive action to enable this, including strengthening our whistleblowing policy."The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said it "expected the highest standards of safety and security as former nuclear sites are dismantled, and the regulator is clear that public safety is not compromised at Sellafield"."This is underpinned by monthly performance reviews and increased responsibility for overseeing major project performance, enabling more direct scrutiny and intervention," a spokeswoman for the department said. "We have zero tolerance of bullying, harassment and offensive behaviour in the workplace - we expect Sellafield and the NDA to operate on this basis, investigate allegations and take robust action when needed."
Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
13 minutes ago
- The Independent
Record 8,000 US students have applied to UK universities amid Trump's college crackdown
American students are applying for U.K. universities in record numbers amid Donald Trump 's college crackdown during his first few months in office. The Trump administration has intervened in higher education, pressuring states, colleges, and universities to abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion programs while attempting to dictate curriculum. The president has also launched high-profile battles against institutions such as Harvard University, freezing billions of dollars in federal funding over alleged liberal bias and antisemitism and threatening their tax-exempt status. All of that appears to be driving American students across the Atlantic, with new figures from the U.K.'s university admissions service, UCAS, showing 7,930 applications from American students for the fall 2025 semester. It marks a nearly 14 percent rise on the previous year and the highest total since records began in 2006. The total number of U.S. students paying deposits to secure places on UK courses is up 19 percent compared to this time last year, according to Enroly. St Andrew's University is home to around ten percent of Americans studying at UK institutions. The prestigious university, which has educated the Prince and Princess of Wales, reported a 14 percent increase in applications, according to the Financial Times. Cara Skikne of Studyportals, a higher education data provider, said increased concern over campus freedoms had pushed more U.S. students to consider degrees abroad. 'Global universities are increasingly competing to attract students who feel unwelcome in the US, and at the moment that includes many of its domestic students,' she told the FT. Studyportals analysed student searches on its website to highlight another concerning trend: U.S. universities are losing their appeal to international students. Research published in June showed that pageviews for U.S. courses fell by 50 percent in the first quarter of the year, marking a post-Covid-19 pandemic low. Despite Trump's more restrictive approach to student visas and immigration policies, Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the U.S. remains a welcoming place for British students. Last month, McMahon told The Times that she would like to continue 'to encourage' British students 'to come here and study'.
The Independent
13 minutes ago
- The Independent
Striking doctors willing to ‘discuss all options' to halt five-day walkout
Resident doctors are willing to 'discuss all options' in crunch talks with the Government to avert strike action, the co-chair of the Resident Doctors Committee (RDC) has said. A five-day walkout is scheduled to start next week and could cause significant upheaval to the NHS in England. The RDC – part of the British Medical Association (BMA) – is meeting with Health Secretary Wes Streeting on Thursday afternoon. Discussions could be tense after Mr Streeting told MPs on Monday that he did not see a 'reasonable trade union partner' in the RDC 'at this time'. The Cabinet minister has insisted the Government will not budge on pay, but said discussions could focus on improving working lives of resident doctors. RDC co-chairs were asked if they would accept an offer on working conditions as they arrived for talks at Portcullis House shortly before 3pm. Dr Melissa Ryan told reporters: 'We're willing to be here and discuss all options with Mr Streeting, we're very flexible – we're just interested to hear what he has to say.' It was put to the RDC co-chairs that the public was 'broadly on-side' for the previous round of strikes but support is now 'waning'. Dr Ryan responded: 'I think that the public is behind us in the sense that they want to see doctors paid fairly, they want doctors to be in the NHS, doctors retained, because ultimately they want good care and that's what we're here to talk to Wes Streeting about today.' Dr Ryan's co-chair Dr Ross Nieuwoudt said: 'We're hopeful and we're confident that Wes Streeting is going to come to us with a credible offer to avert these strikes, that's what we're here for today, that's what we're looking to achieve. 'So now it's up to him, the ball's in his court, we're here to talk – hopefully those conversations will go somewhere.' On Tuesday, NHS leaders said there was no extra money to cover industrial action by resident doctors, formerly known as junior doctors. The last round of strikes, which also included walkouts by other health workers, came at an estimated cost of £1.5 billion to the NHS in England. Some 1.5 million appointments, procedures and operations were postponed as a result of the stoppages. On Thursday, The Times reported that it had seen an audit which found that five patients died as a result of disruption linked to strikes by junior doctors in 2023 and 2024. One prevention of future death report detailed how 71-year-old Daphne Austin, who had a kidney injury, died after getting 'no medical input' on one of the strike days because the consultant who was covering was in charge of 25 patients. Another states that 60-year-old John Doyle died of 'natural causes against a background of missed opportunities to diagnose and treat cytomegalovirus infection, together with the impact of the resident (formerly junior) doctors' strike on the provision of consistent patient care'. The strikes ended last September when resident doctor members voted to accept a Government pay deal worth 22.3% on average over two years. The 2025/26 pay deal saw resident doctors given a 4% increase plus £750 'on a consolidated basis', working out as an average rise of 5.4%. Government officials said these two increases equate to a 28.9% pay rise. But the BMA said resident doctors need 29.2% to reverse 'pay erosion' since 2008/09. Earlier this month, the union announced that resident doctors in England would strike for five days from 7am on July 25.
The Independent
13 minutes ago
- The Independent
More than 100 British government personnel exposed by Afghan data leak
A catastrophic data leak by a Ministry of Defence official in February 2022 exposed details of tens of thousands of Afghans seeking refuge in the UK due to their links with British forces. The breach also compromised the identities of over 100 British government personnel, including MI6 spies, SAS members, members of parliament, and senior military figures. The leak led to 16,000 affected Afghans being evacuated to Britain, with 8,000 more expected, and was subject to an unprecedented two-year superinjunction preventing publication of details. Defence secretary John Healey confirmed the exposure of British officials' names, while the Intelligence and Security Committee demanded immediate briefings and intelligence assessments regarding the superinjunction. Former armed forces minister James Heappey criticised the Ministry of Defence's "flawed" decision-making on sanctuary applications for Afghan special forces, known as the Triples, whose payments by the UK government were initially denied but later confirmed.
