SCOTTISH Labour have been called out for their support of nuclear energy as an MP warned of the risks of radioactivity in parts of the country.
Allan Dorans, the MP for Ayr said parts of his constituency were being contaminated by radioactive waste from the Sellafield reprocessing plant in Cumbria.
He highlighted research which found that shellfish caught off the Ayrshire coast at Maidens, in the extreme west of his constituency, contained radiation at a level which would mean it would be illegal for sale in Japan.
It comes as the Government yesterday unveiled new plans for what it called the "biggest nuclear expansion in 70 years".
Catches, including the shells of mussels, cockles and winkles made off the Ayrshire coast, which is downstream from Sellafield, were found to contain “significant” levels of radiation in a 2015 study.
Labour are committed to nuclear energy, with party leader Keir Starmer using a speech last summer to slam the Government for stalling the UK’s progress on setting up new atomic power plans and to pledge if in power he would invest in the energy source.
But concerns have been raised about its safety, with critics pointing to the possibility of leaks or major breakdowns like Chernobyl or Fukushima.
Dorans (above) is facing a challenge for his Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock seat in the upcoming General Election, expected later this year, from Labour candidate Elaine Stewart.
He has challenged Stewart on her party’s position on the issue and asked whether Labour had considered a 2022 report which found that small modular reactors – the type championed by the UK Government – produce more waste which is more “chemically… reactive” than existing reactors.
And he highlighted an investigation by The Guardian which found that Sellafield had a worsening leak from a silo of radioactive waste.
Dorans told The National: “The Labour candidate for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock will follow the UK Labour Party line which also supports Trident and is calling for new nuclear power stations in Scotland. My party, the SNP, is firmly opposed to both.
“Will Scottish Labour abandon its commitment to investing in the supposedly safer small modular reactor nuclear power stations when its researchers get round to reading the 2022 peer-reviewed research suggesting that they produce up to 30 times as much waste and so will require even larger ‘Sellafields’ to be built as far away from London as their still together UK can manage?”
Scottish Labour were approached for comment.
