BNFL today (Friday) confirmed it was putting Westinghouse, its nuclear design and construction arm, on the market despite the anticipated upturn in worldwide demand for new nuclear power stations.

Dai Hudd, Prospect Assistant General Secretary, said the decision would cost the UK taxpayer many billions of pounds in lost contracts. "We will lose at least £8-9 billion in potential contracts for China and the rest of Asia which are now likely to go to America.

"The Trade and Industry Select Committee should launch an immediate enquiry into a decision which is so obviously against the national interest. At the very least the Government should have made a statement to MPs, as it did when it announced its plans for BNFL to be turned into a Public-Private Partnership six years ago.

"What the staff of BNFL want to know is what has happened to change the economic and technical arguments that persuaded the Government to back BNFL’s purchase of Westinghouse in 1999.

"This decision has been forced on BNFL in order to make a quick buck for the Treasury, without regard to commercial common-sense or the UK’s own future energy needs."

Prospect represents 6,000 staff across BNFL’s 22 UK sites, chiefly professional scientists, engineers, managers and other specialists.