Politics1 min read

UK Green party drops longstanding opposition to nuclear power

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The motion formally ends the party's historic opposition to nuclear fission, permitting politicians to weigh projects alongside other low-carbon technologies. Green MP Carla Denyer noted that keeping existing plants running offers low-carbon power since upfront construction emissions are already spent, though new reactors face strict cost and timeline scrutiny. The pivot counters prior stances from leadership figures like Zack Polanski, who previously likened funding new reactors to investing in fax machines. However, critics like former government adviser Andrew Stirling condemned the decision as irrational, maintaining that renewables paired with storage offer a faster, cheaper climate so…

Key points

  • Elected Green representatives can now evaluate nuclear power proposals individually rathe…: Elected Green representatives can now evaluate nuclear power proposals individually rather than maintaining an outright ban.
  • Offshore wind, onshore wind, and rooftop solar will continue to serve as the party's prim…: Offshore wind, onshore wind, and rooftop solar will continue to serve as the party's primary energy priorities.
  • Critics argue that pairing renewable generation with energy storage is a faster and more…: Critics argue that pairing renewable generation with energy storage is a faster and more affordable path to decarbonisation.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Green party members have voted to end the party’s opposition to nuclear power, dropping a commitment to phase out the technology in a major shift in its energy policy.

The motion, adopted at conference, removes a “blanket opposition to nuclear fission” and instead commits the Green party of England and Wales to assessing nuclear projects alongside other low-carbon technologies.

Its electricity generation policy still prioritises offshore wind, onshore wind and rooftop solar as the primary sources of electricity, but allows elected representatives to support new nuclear reactors on a case-by-case basis.

The Green MP Carla Denyer said the decision recognised there was a role for nuclear while the country moved towards an electricity system based primarily on renewables. “This evolution of our policy does not commit the party to backing new nuclear, but accepts this power source is here to stay for now, while we transition to electricity generation based primarily on renewable sources,” she said.

Denyer said keeping existing nuclear stations running could be a low-carbon option because a significant proportion of their carbon footprint came from construction. “So…

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