Nuclear Power

4.34.36pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 11th Oct 2007

Last week Tom Brake, MP for Carshalton and Wallington, set up his innovative e-mail based consultation group. Regular e-mails give constituents a chance to gain information on a particular issue and then give their opinions by answering a poll. This pioneering system of e-democracy allows for frequent direct communication with constituents.

Tom Brake said "The e-group is an invaluable tool for understanding what really matters to constituents. As an MP, it is crucial to know people's views on current issues. E-democracy allows unprecedented ease of communication between MPs and the people they represent. I hope other MPs will follow suit in taking advantage of e-mail as a way of gauging local opinion.

"The use of e-mail is also more environmentally friendly. The rate of climate change is increasing at an alarming rate. We need to act responsibly to ensure that our actions do not jeopardise the future of this planet. The use of the e-group allows political debate to flourish without adversely affecting the environment."

Concerns over climate change inspired the topic of discussion for Tom Brake's first e-group poll. Tom Brake asked whether members of the e-group support renewable energy sources or nuclear power as an alternative to environmentally harmful fossil fuel.

The results have shown strong support for renewable energy over nuclear power.

Commenting on the results, Tom Brake said "The UK's current nuclear power plants have a poor record. Not a single nuclear build has been finished on time and within budget. The existing nuclear plants have also left the country with close to 100,000 cubic metres of radioactive waste - that's equivalent to 33 Olympic sized swimming pools."

Only 26% of respondents supported a second generation of Nuclear Power plants, with 63% in favour of Renewable Energy Sources and only 17% for a mixture of the two.

Tom has written to the Secretary of State for Business and Enterprise, detailing the full results of the poll as well as a cross-section of the comments made by members of the e-group.