Iran
Iran stepped up its war of words with the west yesterday over its nuclear programme by threatening to abrogate the international treaty on nuclear weapons if a binding UN security council resolution is set against Tehran.
Guardian 8th May 2006
Scotsman 8th May 2006
Herald, 8th May 2006
C4 News 7th May 2006
BBC 7th May 2006
Iran mocked Tony Blair yesterday, saying Labour’s drubbing in last week’s local elections was caused by his close alliance with President George W Bush.
Telegraph 8th May 2006
Nuclear War
Secret cold war bunker reopens as museum in York, but the centre ‘would not have withstood bomb blast’
Guardian 8th May 2006
Urenco
The government is considering an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange for Urenco as a way of offloading its 33% stake in the uranium-enrichment business.
Guardian 8th May 2006
British Energy
Bob Davies, former chief executive of Arriva, is to retain an association with power by joining the board of British Energy, the country’s largest nuclear power generator, as a non-executive director.
FT 8th May 2006
UKAEA
The Government will consider spinning off the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority into the private sector as part of its push to divest nuclear assets from public ownership. Dipesh Shah, chief executive of UKAEA, is working on a management buyout of the nuclear decommissioning body in a deal that could value the business at about £450m.
Telegraph 8th May 2006
Obituary of nuclear engineer, Frank Cuttle
Guardian 8th May 2006
Local Authorities
Almost all local authorities in Britain hold investments in the world’s largest weapons companies, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act. The figures show that they invest £723m in 15 of the largest international arms companies. This is more than double what local authorities spend on promoting local enterprise and new businesses across Britain, says the Campaign Against the Arms Trade, Caat, which conducted the FoI exercise. It found that 67 of Britain’s 99 council pension funds invest nearly £244m in BAE Systems, the UK’s largest arms company. One in three council pension funds help to finance the manufacture of nuclear weapons through investments in Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest arms company, according to Caat. It says they are investing £20m in Lockheed, which manufactures Trident nuclear missiles for the US and Britain and is a contractor at the Aldermaston Atomic Weapons Establishment, which produces and maintains the UK’s nuclear warheads.
Guardian 8th May 2006