Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support the development of small modular reactors.

The Net Zero Strategy makes clear that nuclear is an important part of the Government’s plans to achieve net zero. Up to £210 million in Government grant funding was announced in November 2021 for Rolls-Royce SMR to further develop the design for one of the world’s first Small Modular Reactor designs, potentially capable of deployment in the UK in the early 2030s. In the Net Zero Strategy, the Government also announced up to £120 million for a Future Nuclear Enabling Fund to provide targeted support to address barriers to entry. This fund will be part of the measures the Government will take to inform investment decisions during the next Parliament on further nuclear projects, alongside a final investment decision from this Parliament on a further Gigawatt-scale project.