Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his sneaky 'gotcha' question about the nuclear reactors being constructed at Rolls-Royce in Derby. Can I just say, we're talking about sealed nuclear reactors that will never be refuelled, that are of the size to power one machine, that are not designed to power cities and that will need to be disposed of for the first occasion in the early 2050s, while those opposite are talking about establishing a civil nuclear industry which, if it's to have any impact on emissions reduction, will need to be operating in the 2030s, with all the attendant disposal associated with that.

But let me make one other point. Yes, the nuclear reactors will be safe for the submariners, as they will for those who are at HMAS Stirling. Why? Because we are spending an enormous amount of money to make sure they are secure. If you take that amount of money and apply it to all the—

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