News : Cumbrians to be asked to take part in radioactive waste opinion poll
A poll is to be conducted to find out if people in
The representative opinion poll, which will be conducted by reputable polling company Ipsos MORI, will begin on 8th March and will take place throughout March and April.
The poll is being conducted on behalf of the West Cumbria Managing Radioactive Waste Safely (MRWS) Partnership, which is currently running a public consultation on its initial opinions on issues relating to whether the area should take part in the Government’s search for a repository.
More than 3,000 people will be surveyed on the telephone – around a third of these will be Allerdale residents, around a third will be from Copeland and the rest from other areas of
The survey will be based on a questionnaire which has been open to consultation on the MRWS Partnership’s website www.westcumbriamrws.org.uk
The poll is important because it will help gauge whether there is credible support for
Alan Smith, Partnership member and Leader of Allerdale Borough Council, said: “We want people to be aware that they may receive a call in the coming weeks from Ipsos MORI, who are conducting this poll.
“We would like people to take the time to answer the questions and let us know whether they feel the area should take part in the Government’s search or not. This is an important decision for the area and we want to know what people think about the issues.”
A representative poll is being used rather than a referendum because the Partnership concluded that at this stage not enough information is known about where a repository may be sited and therefore on key issues such as safety, geology and the construction process.
If the area was to participate in the search, it is possible that a public referendum could be held at a later stage when more information is available.
The Partnership is made up of representatives of all the local authorities in the county as well as organisations such as the National Farmers’
The Partnership has set out its initial opinions on issues such as geology and safety in a consultation document and is now giving the public the chance to have their say. These views will then be taken into consideration when the Partnership finalises its report to send to the three local authorities that will make a formal decision about whether to take part in the search for a site – Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council. The consultation runs until March 23.
If the area does decide to participate in this process, the councils could withdraw at any point in the future until work begins to build a repository. It would take around 15 years to find a suitable site following extensive testing of geology and other factors.
For more information about the Partnership and a copy of the consultation document visit the Partnership’s website – www.westcumbriamrws.org.uk
For updates from the Partnership you can also follow them on Twitter @westcumbriamrws
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For media enquiries please contact the Partnership’s communications advisor Paul Gardner or Ian Boydon at Osprey Communications on 01524-782086 or 077667906561
1. The Chair of Partnership rotates between the three principle authorities on the Partnership – Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council.
2. In addition to Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council there are a range of other organisations making up the Partnership, including Barrow Borough Council, local trade unions, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), Churches Together Council, Eden District Council, South Lakeland District Council, Carlisle City Council, the Lake District National Park Authority, the Cumbria Association of Local Councils, NuLeAF (the Nuclear Legacy Advisory Forum), the Cumbria Chamber of Commerce and Cumbria Tourism.
3. A number of other organisations attend as ‘observing members’ including Government departments, the Isle of Man Government, CoRWM (Committee on Radioactive Waste Management), the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the safety and environment regulators.
4. The Government is looking for a community in the