We are gradually approaching polling day in Scotland, where the country will decide on the composition of our parliament in Edinburgh.
Current polling predicts that parties opposed to both nuclear weapons and new nuclear power in Scotland will make up a majority of MSPs in Holyrood, though who will form the Scottish government after May cannot be reliably predicted.
Pro-nuclear parties have attempted to make nuclear power an election issue in Scotland. Scottish Labour’s manifesto published last week erroneously promoted nuclear as “clean energy” in a chapter on Scotland’s energy future.
This is inaccurate since, as we know, nuclear power is not clean but in fact produces large quantities of toxic nuclear waste. In fact, there is still no sustainable solution to dealing with the UK’s nuclear waste.
The long-term nuclear storage facility at Sellafield is over 70 years old. Greenpeace maintain the Irish Sea may be one of the most radioactively contaminated in the world as a direct consequence of radioactive discharges from Sellafield.
Meanwhile, plans for a brand new Geological Disposal Facility (GDF) off the coast of Cumbria, for long-term storage of nuclear waste, were last year badged “unaffordable” at £52bn and “unachievable” by the UK treasury. Industry leaders doubt the sustainability of the nuclear enterprise in the UK without this new facility.
To characterise nuclear power as “clean” is therefore a total misnomer. Caithness in Scotland is to this day dealing with hazardous risks from the long-closed Dounreay plant.
This is only one of many reasons why the Scottish government must remain opposed to new nuclear in Scotland. Join Scottish CND’s free webinar this Thursday to hear the comprehensive case against nuclear power from three highly knowledgeable guests, just days before the 40th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster.
The nuclearban.scot website makes it possible to view Guided Tour of the Unacceptable for a limited time, a film about nuclear weapons in Scotland and how they have been resisted. They have also provided an online election database where you can search political candidates in your respective areas and find out their views on nuclear power and nuclear weapons.
In other important news, we are making a select number of free Eventbrite tickets here available for Scottish CND’s fringe meeting at the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) in Dundee next week.
The meeting, Security, Prosperity and Jobs: Escaping Scotland’s Nuclear Nightmare, will take place from 17:45 to 19:00 on Tuesday 21st April at the Quaker Meeting House, 9 Whitehall Crescent, DD1 4AR (near Caird Hall, where the STUC is meeting).
The speakers are: Ann Henderson (RMT/Alternative Defence Review) Richard Hardy (National Secretary for Scotland, Prospect) Andrea Bradley (Gen Sec, EIS), Bill Ramsay (South Lanarkshire Trade Union Council) and Isobel Lindsey (Vice Chair, SCND).
This is an important opportunity to build stronger links with the Scottish trade union movement, and we welcome our members joining STUC delegates. Tea/coffee and snacks will be provided. Only a few tickets available – first come, first served.
We are at a critical juncture in deciding Scotland’s energy and security future. Please continue to follow and support Scottish CND so we can continue to making the case for a greener, safer, nuclear-free Scotland!
