We need nuclear power AND green energy

The Government's announcement last week that it has decided to commission a new generation of nuclear power plants is one that I welcome.

To meet Britain's energy needs we do of course need to invest in renewable energy: I also welcome the plans for more offshore windfarms and (if the ecological issues can be overcome) the proposals for a tidal barrage across the river Severn.

Anyone who claims that you're either for the environment or pro-nuclear is being dishonest. Those who believe that the UK's entire energy contribution can be met from solar panels and wind turbines are mistaken, as prominent environmentalist George Monbiot who investigated this issue extensively has acknowledged.

Some have urged us to wait for carbon sequestration technology to be realised - yes, that will make a contribution when it arrives, but we're not there yet and we need to meet an energy gap that is just around the corner - 2015 is when our demand is forecast to outstrip supply. It's why the decision on nuclear is overdue: even on the most optimistic timescales the first new nuclear plant won't start working until 2019.

Some oppose nuclear on safety grounds; that despite far more coal miners or gas technicians being injured or killed in recent years. It has been over 20 years since Chernobyl: and that was a neglected, unsafe power station. British nuclear plants were built and maintained to far higher standards and technology has made new generation nuclear energy even safer still.

Others argue that the waste produced outweighs the benefits of zero-carbon emissions. I disagree, but even if sympathetic to that case, we can actually reprocess nuclear waste and get further energy from it. It's an expensive option, but no more so than most of the renewable alternatives.

We need a "basket" of energies to keep our country running: more renewables; combined heat and power plants which also help with our refuse problem and alongside these sources better home insulation, energy saving technology and more awareness of how much energy we each consume.