Nuclear energy and the energy scene in the UK

In 1984 the future of nuclear energy in the UK was undergoing its severest examination to date, the Sizewell 'B' inquiry. Since then, the inquiry has closed in March 1985 after a record 340 days and the Inspector Sir Frank Layfield has prepared his exhaustive report. The report published in January 1987 recommended that consent for Sizewell 'B' should be granted. After debate in both Houses of Parliament the Secretary of State for Energy granted consent on 12 March 1987. The Nuclear Installations Inspectorate followed with the site licence on 4 June 1987. This endorsement, made against a background of public concern in the wake of the Chernobyl accident in April 1986 and the drastic fall in world fossil fuel prices, allowed the Central Electricity Generating Board not only to start on the construction of Sizewell 'B', but to plan for a future in which nuclear energy has an important role. These plans are reviewed against the background of the current UK energy scene. (author)