Osmond Chia<\/span>Business reporter<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n The UK has become the “most expensive place in the world” to build nuclear power plants, according to a government review which criticises “overly complex” bureaucracy around the sector.<\/p>\n The report, which was commissioned by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, <\/b>calls for a “one-stop shop” for nuclear decisions. <\/p>\n A “radical reset” of the rules around nuclear power could save Britain “tens of billions” in costs and reverse the industry’s “decline” in recent years, the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce said<\/a>.<\/p>\n It comes as the UK government looks to build a new generation of nuclear plants to meet the country’s future energy needs and net zero targets.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Hinkley Point C in Somerset is expected to start operating in the early 2030s, while Sizewell C – which the government says will be <\/b>capable of powering six million homes – will follow later that decade. <\/p>\n The UK is also setting up small nuclear power stations<\/a>, which are faster to build than full-size reactors.<\/p>\n The taskforce’s report said the planning system needed to be streamlined and the risks associated with nuclear energy should be brought in line with the rest of the world<\/p>\n It said the UK had excessively risk-averse policies in place, including “overly conservative” rules on radiation exposure levels for workers.<\/p>\n A “fragmented” regulatory system has led to “conservative and costly decisions not proportionate to the actual risk being managed”, it said.<\/p>\n The report said nuclear plants – which generate electricity by using atomic reactions to produce heat – were “essential to the UK’s future”, with the country at risk of missing out on a “worldwide nuclear renaissance”.<\/p>\n Taskforce chair John Fingleton said: “Our solutions are radical, but necessary. By simplifying regulation, we can maintain or enhance safety standards while finally delivering nuclear capacity safely, quickly, and affordably.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Speaking to the BBC’s Today programme, Mr Fingleton said the UK’s regulations have “made us the most expensive place in the world to build nuclear”.<\/p>\n Limitations on exposure to radiation are stricter in an energy setting than in a dentists or doctors, he said.<\/p>\n “Motorways wouldn’t be very useful if we all drove at five miles an hour but that’s sort of what we’re doing in nuclear safety.”<\/p>\n The government is expected to address the report’s findings later this month in the Budget.<\/p>\n Several major economies are reassessing their nuclear strategies and expanding capacity. <\/p>\n The number of planned and proposed nuclear plants currently in the works is roughly equivalent to the number already in operation around the world.<\/p>\n The UK is among 30 other countries that have signed a global pledge to triple their nuclear capacity by 2050 in a bid to cut carbon emissions.<\/p>\n Britain’s existing nuclear power stations account for about 15% of the electricity generated in 2024.<\/p>\n The UK runs nine nuclear reactors but they are ageing, with eight set to shut by 2030, and the new plants<\/a> will take several years to come online.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Beyond the UK, France plans to build at least six new reactors, while China has nearly 30 under construction.<\/p>\n The US completed its first new reactor in over three decades last year, and Japan – which temporarily shuttered its nuclear programme after the 2011 meltdown at Fukushima<\/a> – now plans for it to supply a fifth of its electricity by 2040.<\/p>\n![\"Getty](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/0071\/live\/e8f59110-c8ec-11f0-bd6f-997d9323e7f8.jpg.webp\")
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