Senior deputy general secretary Sue Ferns said in response to the public accounts committee's findings on the clear up of the Magnox nuclear sites overseen by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority:

“The government must learn from these errors and commit to providing the resources to ensure that these problems do not arise again.

“Our members in the sector are highly qualified professionals and work hard to maintain the international reputation of the UK’s civil nuclear industry.

“The findings of the Public Accounts Committee reinforce Prospect’s concerns, at the time, about the money available, and project and contract management capability of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).

“Central government must also be held to account for approving the NDA’s approach to procurement which resulted in a monumental waste of taxpayer’s money.

“The recommendations made by the committee should be implemented through dialogue with the workforce who are best placed to advise on how this can be avoided again.”