British nuke safety getting ‘progressively worse’ due to spending cutbacks: study

The report said there was a ‘lack of adequate resource to deliver the defence nuclear programmes safely.’

The report also warned that the number of nuke incidents is too high,which “poses a risk to the workforce and public safety and to the environment,in both short and medium term.”

It also flayed the ministry for failing to fund disposal of 17 defunct nuclear submarines laid up at Devonport in Plymouth and Rosyth in Fife.

The study urged nuclear managers “to establish the most robust baselines possible and defend them rigorously.”

“This again shows that the ever continuing reduction in resources is putting the safety of MoD staff and the public at increasing and indeed unacceptable risk,” the Guardian quoted a former senior MoD safety official,Fred Dawson,as saying.

Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament co-ordinator John Ainslie accused British Prime Minister David Cameron’s government of “cutting corners” on nuclear safety.

The ministry defended itself by saying that it maintains the highest standards of nuclear safety and had an excellent record over the past 50 years.

“This is recognised in the report,which describes a wide range of actions we have already taken to ensure we have sufficient numbers of qualified and experienced personnel,” a MoD spokeswoman said.