WHILST some may deem it unfortunate that Britain’s new nuclear energy reactors will be supplied by foreign governments, there will be many new British jobs created in the supply chain, as each new station represents a huge engineering and construction project.

And the strike price of £90 per megawatt hour (MWH) seems a bargain compared to the costs of offshore wind energy. Here in Dorset, where the world’s biggest wind farm is proposed off the Jurassic Coast World Heritage site, the developers – a French and Dutch consortium – are guaranteed around £150 per MWH for the 20-year life of the project.

Add to this the fact that all proposed nuclear sites have existing grid connections, whereas the Dorset wind farm required a 22-mile access road and cabling to be driven through the New Forest, and wind looks an increasingly unattractive option.

PHIL DEWHURST, McKinley Road, Bournemouth