The Green party of England and Wales has changed its policy to no longer oppose nuclear power outright, allowing for case-by-case assessment of new projects alongside other low-carbon technologies. At their recent conference, members voted to shift from phasing out nuclear fission to evaluating it based on evidence, although the priority remains offshore wind, onshore wind, and rooftop solar energy sources. Green MP Carla Denyer stated that while acknowledging the high costs and slow pace of nuclear projects, keeping existing stations operational could be a low-carbon option during the transition to renewable energy dominance.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Green party members have voted to end the party’s opposition to nuclear power, dropping a commitment to phase out the technology in a major shift in its energy policy.
asserted
members → vote → policy
The motion, adopted at conference, removes a “blanket opposition to nuclear fission” and instead commits the Green party of England and Wales to assessing nuclear projects alongside other low-carbon technologies.
Its electricity generation policy still prioritises offshore wind, onshore wind and rooftop solar as the primary sources of electricity, but allows elected representatives to support new nuclear reactors on a case-by-case basis.
The Green MP Carla Denyer said the decision recognised there was a role for nuclear while the country moved towards an electricity system based primarily on renewables.
asserted
country → adopt → renewables
“This evolution of our policy does not commit the party to backing new nuclear, but accepts this power source is here to stay for now, while we transition to electricity generation based primarily on renewable sources,” she said.
asserted
she → commit → sources
Denyer said keeping existing nuclear stations running could be a low-carbon option because a significant proportion of their carbon footprint came from construction.
uncertain
proportion → say → construction
“So if I were energy secretary, my evidence-based approach would be to keep existing nuclear plants in operation, but to consider proposals for new nuclear power very carefully, bearing in mind the cost, speed and environmental impacts.”
asserted
approach → base → cost
Her comments strike a different tone from her assessment in 2023, when she described nuclear energy as “incredibly slow and incredibly expensive”.
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she → strike → energy
She said at the time: “Renewables is simply the way forward.
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Renewables → say → time
Nuclear is not going to help us out in this climate emergency.”
asserted
Nuclear → go → emergency
Other senior Greens have previously criticised the technology.
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Greens → criticise → technology
The party’s leader, Zack Polanski, has described it as outdated and compared investment in new nuclear reactors to “creating a fax machine”.
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leader → describe → machine
Last year, Adrian Ramsay, then a Green co-leader, criticised government support for Sizewell C. “The money being spent on this nuclear gamble would be far better spent on insulating and retrofitting millions of homes, bringing down energy bills and keeping people warmer and more comfortable,” he said.
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he → criticise → people
The Green’s previous opposition to nuclear fission was rooted in its staunch opposition of nuclear weapons, one of the party’s founding principles.
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opposition → root → principles
Eugene McCarthy, a co-founder of Greens for Nuclear and a supporter of the motion, said the urgency of the climate crisis demanded a willingness to consider all available options.
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urgency → say → options
“We are at the throw-the-kitchen-sink-at-it phase of the climate crisis where you cannot be ruling anything out for things like Chernobyl happening in the 1980s,” he said.
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he → throw → 1980s
The motion allows elected representatives to assess individual proposals on their merits, McCarthy said.
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McCarthy → allow → merits
“We will not say we support or don’t support any particular technology.
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we → say → technology
This motion basically lets our elected members of parliament take it on a case-by-case basis and go: ‘This makes sense, we will extend the lifetime of Sizewell B,’ and on a different case say: ‘Actually the numbers don’t add up here.’”
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numbers → let → case
Asked about Polanski’s previous criticism of nuclear, McCarthy said the leader remained entitled to his views.
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leader → ask → views
“He’s still fully entitled to say that, and a lot of the nuclear technology that we are using is quite outdated, to be frank.
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we → ’ → that
What this means is that he can now take a nuanced position.”
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he → mean → position
Prof Andrew Stirling, who has advised government on nuclear power and energy policy, said the motion was “completely irrational”.
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motion → advise → power
“Why would a party that pioneered concerns about nuclear power that have been so broadly vindicated by history, choose now to shift its position?” he said.
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he → pioneer → position
“All authoritative sources agree that climate action is much faster, affordable and impactful with combined renewables and storage,” he added.
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he → agree → renewables
McCarthy said: “Renewables are cheaper and have much more capacity, and you can roll them out much quicker.
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you → say → them
[But] there are issues with baseload, which nuclear can help with.”
asserted
nuclear → be → which
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