Call me an 80s retread hippy environmentalist if you will but I find the news that the Government are gung ho for nuclear power alarming. I’ve pointed out before that UNISON is at odds with Gordon Brown on this. UNISON has policy in opposition to nuclear power.
The arguments for nuclear power are predictable ones about job creation and uber-Blairite Hutton says that nuclear power will be the new North Sea oil. North Sea oil was dangerous – but this doesn’t really compare with this. Nuclear power is criminally dangerous and creates radioactive waste which we have no long term plans for.
We do face an energy crisis, but it needs to be tackled by radical reductions in our use of energy and by developing renewables – not by trying to breathe life into the nuclear industry.
Green issues have a higher profile within our Union than ever before – and there are several motions on climate change on the Preliminary Agenda for National Delegate Conference which would lend themselves to an appropriate anti-nuclear amendment because nuclear power is not the answer to climate change.
Motion 107 from Camden includes appropriate anti-nuclear sentiments which could be added by amendment to other motions more likely to be prioritised in order to ensure that UNISON’s opposition to nuclear power is clearly restated in the composite on Climate Change which will probably be one of the key debates at this year’s Conference.
The arguments for nuclear power are predictable ones about job creation and uber-Blairite Hutton says that nuclear power will be the new North Sea oil. North Sea oil was dangerous – but this doesn’t really compare with this. Nuclear power is criminally dangerous and creates radioactive waste which we have no long term plans for.
We do face an energy crisis, but it needs to be tackled by radical reductions in our use of energy and by developing renewables – not by trying to breathe life into the nuclear industry.
Green issues have a higher profile within our Union than ever before – and there are several motions on climate change on the Preliminary Agenda for National Delegate Conference which would lend themselves to an appropriate anti-nuclear amendment because nuclear power is not the answer to climate change.
Motion 107 from Camden includes appropriate anti-nuclear sentiments which could be added by amendment to other motions more likely to be prioritised in order to ensure that UNISON’s opposition to nuclear power is clearly restated in the composite on Climate Change which will probably be one of the key debates at this year’s Conference.
As readers of this blog will probably know, only those Conference motions which are prioritised are available for debate and compositing at Conference. Motions from the NEC and Regions are most likely to be prioritised, so amendments to motions 103, 104 and 105 look like a good idea.
(If anyone reading this supports nuclear power I suggest that we bring all the radioactive waste round your house then?)
You are aware that UNISON organises members who work in the nuclear energy industry, Jon?
ReplyDeleteWell, there's nothing like the support of your fellow union members is there?
ReplyDelete