Written question asked by Llew Smith (Labour) on Thursday, 3 September 1998, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 26 October 1998. It was answered by Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour) on Monday, 26 October 1998 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what factors underlay his decision to withhold details of the costs of the fuelling of Trident submarine reactors and of the costs of importing highly-enriched uranium for the fabrication of nuclear fuel rods for the submarine propulsion reactors.

Answer: Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what factors underlay his decision to withhold details of the costs of the fuelling of Trident submarine reactors and of the costs of importing highly-enriched uranium for the fabrication of nuclear fuel rods for the submarine propulsion reactors. [55415] Mr. George Robertson: The information requested on the costs of the fuelling of Trident submarine reactors could, when combined with other data already in the public domain, provide nuclear proliferators and potential opponents with an insight into the design and performance of the United Kingdom's nuclear powered submarines. This would harm UK national security and defence and, therefore, is being withheld under Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on access to Government Information relating to defence, security and international relations. However, reflecting the new openness on nuclear matters that I announced in the Strategic Defence Review, I am prepared to confirm that the most recent procurement of highly enriched uranium for Defence purposes was made at a rate of $40m per tonne.

Secondary information