Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced plans to unlock land in West Cumbria for new nuclear power generation.
Sir Keir said that the land at Moorside, near Sellafield, would be released for development as part of a swathe of announcements today relating to nuclear.
The announcement follows a year-long campaign by Whitehaven and Workington MP Josh MacAlister.
It was part of a broader announcement by the Prime Minister giving the go ahead to other major new nuclear projects across the country ahead of the Spending Review this week.
The Prime Minister has confirmed that land at Moorside will be freed up from Nuclear Decommissioning Authority control.
It will be leased and marketed by a local development corporation, yet to be revealed, to pave the way for a potential new nuclear power plant.
Mr MacAlister said: “This puts the decisions over its future into local hands – not central government.”
The corporation will market the land, called Pioneer Park, primarily for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).
Campaigners say unlocking land at Moorside has been the biggest barrier to securing new nuclear power generation in West Cumbria since the collapse of the NuGen deal in 2018.
A plan for a £6 billion private nuclear development of SMRs was blocked in 2023 by the then Conservative government because of competing demands on the use of the land.
In October last year, Mr MacAlister told Parliament that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority had earmarked a large area of Moorside to lay down construction materials for future buildings it hoped to build on the Sellafield site.
Cumberland’s four MPs, the leader of Cumberland Council Mark Fryer, the leaders of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and Sellafield Ltd and local union and business representatives set up the Cumberland Nuclear Future Board last year.
Several meetings have been held with ministers to try to resolve the issues with use of and access to the land. Agreement has now been reached and work is underway to make the land available.
A market engagement process with nuclear and other clean energy developers will be launched this summer.
Mr MacAlister said: “I made a promise at the General Election to do everything possible to unlock land at Moorside for new nuclear.
“Some people thought it was a dead-end or a cynical promise that would be broken after the election. It hasn’t been easy, but we’ve done it.
“Having the Prime Minister’s backing is a real vote of confidence in West Cumbria and our people and I know we will rise to the challenge.
“Now we have the government behind us and an agreement on use of the land we can motor ahead to deliver Pioneer Park at pace.
“I can’t promise we will get new nuclear, but unlocking this land gives us our best chance since the collapse of NuGen.
“What I can promise is I will do everything in my power to secure our nuclear future. We deserve nothing less.
“I’d also like to put on record my thanks to my fellow MPs, Cumberland Council, the NDA, Sellafield and the trade unions for working together so constructively to get this over the line. When Cumbrians are united, there’s nothing we can’t do!”
Mr Fryer, leader of Cumberland Council, said: “A clean energy development at Moorside is great news for Cumberland and West Cumbria in particular, as it would help grow and diversify our future economy.
“The main driver for me is generating enough power at Moorside, by whatever means, to attract industry and technology to Cumberland that will sustain our economy and create jobs for West Cumbrians long after the inevitable downturn in decommissioning at Sellafield.
“While I am open to all clean energy developments that benefit our community, new nuclear build, in the form of Small Modular Reactors, would unquestionably provide us with the most power capacity for the size of land being made available and give us our best chance of achieving our ultimate goal of attracting industry, technology and jobs into our community.
“The council is fully committed to working with the NDA to understand how we can deliver maximum value and benefit from the land at Moorside for the local community.”
The plan also has the backing of Cumberland’s other Labour MPs.
In a joint statement, Julie Minns (Carlisle) Markus Campbell-Savours (Penrith and Solway) and Michelle Scrogham (Barrow and Furness) said: “We’ve all been part of the Cumberland Nuclear Future Board from the beginning because of the benefit that would be felt right across the area from new nuclear development in West Cumbria.
“We stand fully behind the plan to unlock land at Moorside and welcome the Prime Minister’s backing to drive this forward at pace.
“We’ll be working through the board to ensure Pioneer Park is a success and delivers real and lasting benefits from Carlisle to Barrow.”
Mr MacAlister is hosting a public meeting to discuss his plan for new nuclear in West Cumbria on Thursday June 26 at 6pm.
Anyone wishing to attend can sign up at joshmacalister.uk/meetjosh or by calling his office on 01946 458023 and leaving your full name and address.
Venue details will be provided following registration.
