To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the implications of the section entitled Advantages to the UK's nuclear deterrent programme on page 22 of the Rolls Royce document UK SMR: A National Endeavour; what information his Department holds on the relevance of the UK's civil nuclear programme to the UK's naval nuclear weapons programme; and if he will make a statement.
Answered on
12 October 2017
I have not discussed Rolls-Royce's Small Modular Reactor proposal with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence. The department's interaction with Rolls-Royce on Small Modular Reactors has focussed on the application of their technology for civil electricity generation. Defence and civil nuclear are two separate programmes, though there is liaison in important areas such as waste management and the shared skills base.