Nuclear industry makes ‘key contribution to Britain’s GDP’
4 Dec 2017
Britain’s civil nuclear industry contributed some £6.4 billion to the UK economy last year, claims a new survey by Oxford Economics.
Commissioned by the Nuclear Industry Association, the survey results suggest the direct impact was worth 0.3% of overall national GDP and an estimated £2.8 billion in tax.
NIA chief executive Tom Greatrex commented: “For the first time we have comprehensive data which shows the important role the UK’s civil nuclear sector plays in generating highly skilled and well paid jobs, making a significant contribution to the economy and supplying low carbon electricity to keep the lights on.
“The nature of the nuclear sector means it creates wealth and prosperity across the country – supporting families and non-nuclear businesses in areas where traditionally jobs have been hard to come by.”
With all but one of our nuclear power stations due to close in the period up to 2030, industry and government cannot be complacent.
Tom Greatrex, chief executive, NIA
Per head, nuclear sector employees contribute nearly £97,000 gross value added – some 73% higher than the national workforce average, thanks to the preponderance of highly skilled workers. A total of 65,000 people are employed in nuclear.
When indirect contribution is taken into account, the industry’s economic impact is closer to £12.4 billion, says Oxford Economics, with jobs totaling 155,000 and tax payments topping £4.5 billion.
The NIA also detailed in its Nuclear Activity Report the sector had made savings of 22.7 metric tons of CO² from its operations. This is the equivalent of removing one third of all cars from UK roads.
Added Greatrex: “With all but one of our nuclear power stations due to close in the period up to 2030, industry and government cannot be complacent. We need to build new nuclear power to replace the retiring stations and continue to make significant progress with decommissioning.”
