Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 3:29 pm on 22 January 2025.
Lord Birt
Crossbench
3:29,
22 January 2025
My Lords, I am attracted in principle to the idea of small-scale nuclear reactors scattered across the country on small sites and not just in nuclear submarines. But I have attended a number of meetings with the industry and have no clarity on the economics of the technology and how they compare with alternative paths to net zero. Does the Minister think that the economics are clear yet? If not, will the Government set them out?
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
