Protests at PM's nuclear plant trip

ENVIRONMENTAL campaigners protested as Prime Minister François Fillon toured a nuclear power plant in Japan.

The plant, in the northern city of Rokkasho, was constructed by Japan Nuclear Fuel (JNFL) and France's nuclear giant Areva. According to organisers 700 protestors gathered outside the plant carrying banners which phrases such as "Rokkasho is an environmental and political danger."

Areva has signed a new deal with Japanese industrial giant Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to provide nuclear fuel for reactors.

Both France and Japan, which has few natural resources, are champions of nuclear power. Mr Fillon said: “What was signed confirms the common strategy between France and Japan.”

Japan’s trade minister Akira Amari said: "The Rokkasho plant is necessary for Japan's energy security.”

“As the head of Japan's energy policy and a politician who believes in the future of nuclear energy, I feel deeply grateful to the people in Japan and France who have worked for the plant," he added.

A statement from Greenpeace said the power station was “the biggest and most dangerous obstacle to directing Japan towards a safe and clean energy future."

"Areva is aggressively promoting nuclear power expansion despite the risks, poor value for money and ineffectiveness in combating problems such as climate change," it added.

Photo: Sxc Dimitri Castrique