(S3O-7463) Nuclear Material (Transportation)

1. Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government what structures are in place to monitor the transportation of nuclear material in Scotland. (S3O-7463)

The Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change (Stewart Stevenson):





The transportation of irradiated or spent nuclear fuel is governed by internationally agreed standards that are recommended by the International Atomic Energy Agency and are in accordance with the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003. Those regulations are administered and enforced by the office for civil nuclear security.

Aileen Campbell: The concerns of constituents in my region about nuclear convoys passing up and down the M74 have been reinforced by the recent screening in Lanark of the documentary "Deadly Cargo". Does the minister share my disappointment that the Calman commission saw no need to devolve further powers over nuclear materials to the Scottish Parliament? Does he agree that, far from frustrating United Kingdom Government plans for nuclear power stations and a new generation of Trident, the Scottish Government's opposition to those plans represents the views of the overwhelming majority of those who live close to the M74 and of people across Scotland who want our country to be nuclear free?

Stewart Stevenson: We clearly share the view that Scotland and, indeed, the world would be a safer place without nuclear weapons. We of course seek to manage the risks associated with those weapons while they are here. It is disappointing that the Calman commission did not include discussion about the wider issue of independence, which would give us the powers to engage with the nuclear issue directly, but the member should be assured that we will do everything within our powers and work with others to protect the safety of people as long as we, of necessity, have the convoys on our roads.