Support for nuclear power 'back up'

Public support for nuclear power appears to have bounced back in the UK after falling sharply in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, a survey suggests.

The Ipsos MORI poll of almost 1,000 adults across Britain revealed half of those questioned (50%) supported the building of new nuclear plants in the UK to replace the current generation of reactors which are being shut down.

The figure was up significantly on last June, when support for new nuclear plants fell to a low of 36% following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, which crippled the nuclear power plant at Fukushima, leading to explosions and radiation leaks.

The latest figure was also three percentage points above levels of support for new nuclear build before the accident happened, which stood at 47% last November.

The UK Government plans to build a series of new reactors on or next to existing nuclear sites to replace plants being phased out over the next few years, as part of plans to ensure secure electricity supplies and to help cut carbon emissions.

Currently nuclear power supplies just under a fifth of the UK's electricity.

Support for the plans for new nuclear build fell 11% following the Japanese tsunami last March and boosted opposition by 9%. However the research showed that the proportion of people opposed to new nuclear power had fallen from 28% last June to a fifth of those questioned in December.

Two-fifths of those quizzed looked on the industry favourably, a recovery to the same level as in November 2010 after falling to just 28% in June last year, while unfavourable opinion has slipped back to 19%, just above November 2010 levels.

Robert Knight, director at Ipsos MORI reputation centre, said: "After the body blow suffered by British public opinion following the Fukushima incident in Japan last year, support for nuclear new build has recovered robustly in just a few months.

"It seems the public see Japan as a long way away and memories are short, but concerns about the future security of energy supply closer to home are ongoing and persistent."