Scotland ‘could fund England’s nuclear plants after independence’ under “regulated asset base” (RAB) model
the RAB model was favoured by the Tory government because “the fact is the market has fled nuclear”.
“The market has fled nuclear because of the risk and liability. The only way of getting nuclear through is with vast public subsidy, and this is a way of disguising that public subsidy.
the RAB model had been tried before in the US – under the name Early Cost Recovery – “and failed miserably”.
And that public money would come at the very start of construction. They would be paying right from the word go, so this is essentially free money. Even with that there really doesn’t seem to be much interest from the market.”
SCOTTISH bill payers could still be funding nuclear projects south of the Border through additional fees on their energy bills even after independence, one expert has said.
It comes as the UK Government looks to award the first contracts for new nuclear stations in England, which will be funded through the “regulated asset base” (RAB) model.
This RAB model will see electricity suppliers pay a levy to “relevant licensee nuclear companies”, with the costs passed on to consumers in the form of additional fees on top of their energy bills. Under conservative UK Government estimates, this could mean Scottish households’ energy bills rising by around £100 a year.
Dr Paul Dorfman, the chair of the non-profit Nuclear Consulting Group and associate fellow at the University of Sussex’s Science Policy Research Unit, told The National that the RAB model was favoured by the Tory government because “the fact is the market has fled nuclear”.
“RAB is absolutely, unequivocally all about trying to incentivise the market,” he said, “and it is doing it with public money.”
Dorfman went on: “And that public money would come at the very start of construction. They would be paying right from the word go, so this is essentially free money. Even with that there really doesn’t seem to be much interest from the market.”
The nuclear expert, who will give evidence on the topic to a Westminster committee next week, said the RAB model had been tried before in the US – under the name Early Cost Recovery – “and failed miserably”.
He said: “It can work for projects which you know will come in on time, but nuclear has huge liabilities and huge over-runs, and that’s precisely why it doesn’t work. RAB doesn’t work for projects with high liability and high risk.
“The market has fled nuclear because of the risk and liability. The only way of getting nuclear through is with vast public subsidy, and this is a way of disguising that public subsidy.
Dorfman warned that once the UK Government started sinking billions of pounds into efforts to begin construction of eight new nuclear stations by 2030, it would “become a fait accompli”.
He said that even after 17 years – the amount of time he estimates it will take from a contract being awarded to a nuclear plant being finished – “the UK public, and the Scots public, who may no longer be part of the UK, will still be liable for that”.
Dorfman said the first RAB nuclear contracts looked set to be awarded in 2023, estimating that would mean a completion date of the first nuclear plants around 2040.
“That’s too late for our climate,” he said. “It’s far too late for the current energy crisis. The point is of course, why do this when last year solar and wind made up three-quarters of all total new electricity generation capacity installed worldwide?”
“
The Nuclear Consulting Group chair further cautioned that no one knows for certain what the RAB funding arrangements will be.
Craig Dalzell, the head of policy and research at Common Weal, a think tank which has recently produced a report on the RAB funding model, said the “ongoing liability” for new nuclear projects in England should “not be outsourced to Scotland post-independence”.
Dalzell told The National: “The idea that Scottish energy users could be paying for the UK’s nuclear RAB schemes even after independence will surely be something that should be resisted. The Scottish Government should do everything it can to extract guarantees from the UK Government that this will not be the case and that the ongoing liability for these plants will not be outsourced to Scotland post-independence.
“At the very least, any payments for these plants should be taken into account when the time comes for independence negotiations and I would expect these charges to be offset against other debts or added to an equivalent payment from the remaining UK to Scotland to compensate for their mismanagement of energy policy.”
The UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy declined to comment, saying only that its policy has not changed despite a new Secretary of State, Grant Shapps, taking control.
You can read Dr Dorfman’s written evidence on nuclear power to the House of Commons’ Science and Technology Committee here.
Together Against Sizewell and other groups to fight on, despite legal setback
Campaigners have pledged to fight on after the High Court rejected their
appeal against the Government’s decision to approve the new Sizewell C
nuclear power station. Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) and other
campaign groups are seeking an oral hearing through the judicial review
process after an initial assessment by the legal authority deemed the
appeal should be rejected.
The review of the approval had been sought on
the grounds that the decision was unlawful amid concerns about the
maintenance of a water supply to the new £20bn station and the resilience
of the coastline. The provision of fresh water to the site was one of the
key issues raised by the Planning Inspectorate when considering the plans.
TASC chair Pete Wilkinson described the rejection verdict as ‘predictable
and wholly unreasonable,’ adding there appeared to be a ‘presumption’
that judicial reviews should be dismissed rather than used as a forum for
democracy.
East Anglian Daily Times 28th Oct 2022
https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/23082932.high-court-rejects-sizewell-legal-challenge/
‘Whistleblower’ says legal battle with nuclear site owners ‘almost broke me’
A consultant who claims she was dismissed by Sellafield for exposing failures to address a “toxic” working culture has been granted an appeal against her employment tribunal loss.
Yorkshire Post, By Nathan Hyde, 23 Oct 22,
Equality and diversity consultant Alison McDermott said her contract at the nuclear processing plant ended after she wrote a damning “whistleblowing” report about the human resources (HR) leadership team, claiming they had failed to address complaints about bullying and harassment.
After refusing a £160,000 settlement, she took her case to an employment tribunal. But Employment Judge Philip Lancaster dismissed her claim and ruled she was not a whistleblower, following a hearing in Leeds.
She was then ordered to pay £40,000 to help cover the legal costs of Sellafield Ltd and its parent company – the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
Ms McDermott, from Burley in Wharfedale, has been granted an appeal and she is now raising money to cover her legal costs, ahead of the next hearing in January.
Her legal team have challenged the ruling, but also criticised the judge for refusing to look at the alleged “toxic culture” at Sellafield and alleged failure of the HR team. They said this provides vital context, as it explains Ms McDermott’s decision to become a whistleblower.
“I am doing everything I can because I’m really concerned about what’s going on at Sellafield,” she said………………………………
Ms McDermott signed a two-day-a-week contract with Sellafield Ltd to work as a consultant in equality and diversity at the nuclear fuel reprocessing and decommissioning site in September 2018.
After taking on the role, looked into allegations of sexual harrasment and homophobic abuse.
She also recieved an anonymous letter claiming “serious problems” about sexual harassment “are being ignored”.
The following month, she compiled a report on the HR leadership team, saying they were viewed as “broken and dysfunctional”
by some staff and failing to effectively deal with allegations of harassment and bullying.
Shortly after filing the report, she was told her £1,500-a-day contract would be terminated due to “funding constraints”.
But during the tribunal, Sellafield’s lawyers said it was because the report, which had cost around £12,000, was “questionable and insubstantial” and “lacked any meaningful analysis”.
According to the ruling, the judge accepted the funding constraints excuse was used to allow Ms McDermott to leave “with her head held high”.
He ruled she was not a whistleblower, because she could not make any “disclosures” which are protected under UK employment law.
Sellafield Ltd, which has previously stated it is committed to eradicating bullying and harassment, has been approached for comment. https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/people/whistleblower-says-legal-battle-with-nuclear-site-owners-almost-broke-me-3889870
Rishi Sunak’s Richmond constituency is one of the potential locations for a small nuclear reactor factory
Second Welsh location shortlisted for siting of new nuclear reactor
factory. Shotton has been added to the list of potential locations for one
of the three factories across the UK which will manufacture Rolls-Royce’s
fleet of new SMR reactors.
Deeside was confirmed as the first Welsh
location when the initial round of six potential sites were announced in
July. Redcar in the northeast of England has also been added to the
shortlist of candidates list alongside Shotton.
The Rolls-Royce-led
consortium developing the new technology has confirmed the eight locations
following a bidding process which was launched in January and involved
several English regional development bodies and the Welsh Government.
The eight sites also include Tory leadership candidate – and former
Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Richmond constituency in North Yorkshire, along
with Sunderland, Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire, Stallingborough,
Lincolnshire, and Carlisle. The winning bid has been promised investment of
up to £200m and the creation of up to 200 jobs.
Nation Cymru 22nd Oct 2022
Second Welsh location shortlisted for siting of new nuclear reactor factory
What is Regulatory Asset Base and how will it affect future energy charges for Scots?
THE UK Government is set on using a Regulatory Asset Base (RAB) model to fund
nuclear projects south of the Border. This will directly result in Scots
paying more on their energy bills. Here, former Scottish Office chief
statistician Jim Cuthbert explains what an RAB model is, and the problems
behind it. There are two main problems.
First, the construction phase of
nuclear projects is extremely long. Further, nuclear construction is
notoriously beset by technical difficulties. Midway through a nuclear
construction project, it will be extremely difficult for the regulator to
resist pressure for the RAB base to be inflated to overcome any technical
problems or uncertainties.
Secondly, the operating life of nuclear projects
is again very long, with the UK Government’s current working assumption
being about 60 years. This means that any surplus which is built into the
stream of future RAB payments will be available to be capitalised over this
long period – which will greatly increase the potential windfall profits
to be extracted by the original equity investors.
The National 23rd Oct 2022
https://www.thenational.scot/politics/23071054.rab-will-affect-future-energy-charges-scots/
Nuclear Free Local Authorities urge the UK’s new Chancellor to scrap plan to invest in the Sizewell nuclear white elephant
Hot on the heels of the new Chancellor’s U-turn of everything his
predecessor held dear, the Chair of the Nuclear Free Local Authorities has
written to Jeremy Hunt to urge him to reverse the promised investment of
£700 million made by the previous prime minister on a flying-visit to
Sizewell C and to withdraw from making a commitment to taking an equity
stake in the nuclear ‘white elephant’.
In his letter to the Chancellor, NFLA Chair, Councillor David Blackburn asks for common sense and caution to prevail: “Once the government has Sizewell C on the hook, rather than
land the fish, it is more likely the fish will swallow you whole! Nuclear
projects are always inevitably delivered way over cost and way over time,
and, as an equity holder, His Majesty’s Government will be saddled with
ever greater demands for cash with an ever-decreasing likelihood of
offloading this turkey to a private investor.”
NFLA 20th Oct 2022
Off the hook: UK government absolves nuclear operators from accident liability
“It’s as we suspected”, says the Chair of the Nuclear Free Local Authorities, expressing his disappointment that once more the UK Government is providing a subsidy to the nuclear industry by absolving operators of the need to pay compensation in the event of an accident.
In a letter to Energy Minister Lord Callanan, Councillor David Blackburn asked how nuclear operators, at present French-owned EDF Energy, would be expected to comply with the requirements of the revised provisions of the Paris Convention that they pay out up to 700 million Euro in damages after an accident, whether through taking out insurance with private-sector underwriters to pay the compensation in the event of an accident or by setting aside funds in an escrow account. This liability will increase by a further 100 million Euro in each of the next five years.
In the letter, Cllr Blackburn also expressed the NFLA’s fears that the UK Government would provide a taxpayer funded bailout for the industry by taking on the liability itself, and Lord Callanan’s reply, citing an immature insurance market, makes it clear that this will indeed be the case: ‘the Government has agreed initially to provide an indemnity, for an economic charge, to cover increased personal injury liabilities for the 10-to-30-year period’.
Commenting Councillor Blackburn said: “This is yet another example of a situation in which nuclear enjoys the benefit of a public subsidy.
“Exactly like the situation with the Nuclear Liabilities Fund, where taxpayers pick up the tab for the cost of decommissioning, which in the last two financial years has meant a further £10.7 billion of public money going to the Fund, the poor suffering British taxpayer will have to shell out up to 1.2 billion Euros, that should be paid by the industry, in the event of a nuclear accident.
“By accepting liability, the government is de-risking nuclear operations. And EDF Energy and its ultimate owner, France, are laughing – they can dodge the liability and walk away scot-free if calamity strikes”.
The NFLA has now sent a request under the Freedom of Information Act seeking further details of the so-called ‘economic charge’ paid by nuclear operator EDF Energy to allow them to evade their legal responsibilities. https://www.nuclearpolicy.info/news/off-the-hook-uk-government-absolves-nuclear-operators-from-accident-liability/
‘A nuclear waste dump and seaside resort don’t go well together’.
Campaigners say the proposal will harm Mabletherpe’s tourism sector. A
proposed nuclear waste dump is hanging over communities like ‘the Sword
of Damocles’, campaigners have claimed.
A company is exploring whether the former Theddlethorpe Gas Terminal could be used to store the waste
underground. They claim it would create 4,000 jobs, and safely store the
radioactive material. However, the Guardians of the East Coast say that the
long decision-making process will harm tourism in Mablethorpe.
Ken Smith, chair of the group, said: “A nuclear waste dump and a bucket-and-spade
resort don’t go well together either. For every job created there, one
could be lost in the tourism industry. “And investment won’t come while
the possibility of the nuclear waste is hanging over Theddlethorpe like the
Sword of Damocles. “It would be better that we found out either way
sooner rather than later. The town will get more run down while a decision
is dragging on.” He likened the long-running fight, which could take 10
to 15 years, to a “war of attrition”.
The Lincolnite 19th Oct 2022
NFLA urges government to distribute iodine tablets to help prepare for nuclear threat
On the 40th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, President Jo Biden
has recently warned that the situation today is grave as the world faced in
October 1962. In response, the Nuclear Free Local Authorities have written
to the Energy and Health Secretaries urging them to follow the example of
the Polish and United States Government by acquiring and distributing
iodine tablets to the public as a precautionary protective message should
the war in Ukraine become nuclear.
NFLA 17th Oct 2022
Anti-nuclear campaigners have raised fears about a plan to turn Trawsfynydd into a test-bed for a new generation of mini nuclear power plants.
The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority which owns the Trawsfynydd
nuclear power plant site has signed an agreement with the Welsh
government’s development company, Cwmni Egino, to share information on
how best to redevelop the site. Cwmni Egino chief executive Alan Raymant
has said that they are focused on installing one of a new generation of
mini nuclear reactors developed by Rolls-Royce, with an aim to start on the
work by 2027.
But anti-nuclear campaigners CND Cymru, Cymdeithas y Cymod,
CADNO, and PAWB have released a statement opposing the plans and backing
renewables instead. “Wales is already a net exporter of electricity, and
the investment into true renewables like wave, wind, tidal, and sun will be
much more effective than the billions washed down the nuclear drain,”
they said. “We jointly call on the NDA to reconsider its support of
nuclear development in Wales, and Trawsfynydd and Wylfa in particular, and
further call on the UK and Welsh Government to invest in the green, clean,
and renewable future of wave, wind, and sun that we all deserve.”
Last month anti-nuclear campaigners have protested against plans for new nuclear
power stations to be built in Wales with a 70-mile march across Gwynedd and
Anglesey. Plaid Cymru Gwynedd Council leader Dyfrig Siencyn is among those
to have backed the plans for a new reactor at the nuclear power plant,
which employed 500 people when in operation between 1967 and 1993.
“There’s quite a strong anti-nuclear lobby, and they have been
demonstrating recently; we received a petition from them as a council,”
he told the Telegraph newspaper. “But I think we need nuclear energy if
we are serious about addressing the climate change emergency.”
Nation Cymru 14th Oct 2022 https://nation.cymru/news/anti-nuclear-campaigners-raise-fears-about-trawsfynydd-mini-nuke-test-bed-plans/
Low operating costs make the case for investing in utility-scale renewable projects
Renewables met 100% of global electricity demand growth during the first
half of 2022. So says the ‘Global Electricity Mid-Year Insights 2022’
from Ember, a global energy think tank. In fact, it says there was a 389
TWh increase in the demand for electricity in the first half of 2022
compared to the first half of 2021, whereas the rise in renewables supply
was actually a bit more – 416TWh.
That’s not surprising given that
renewables are getting so cheap- including in the UK, with wind and solar
the most prolificate new sources across world. However, that in turn may
create a bit of a problem for older renewables, set up under quite
lucrative subsidy schemes, based on now high gas prices, like the
Renewables Obligation in the UK. As I have noted in earlier posts, there is
pressure on them to switch to the more competitive CfD system. Certainly
the RO system is based on adding a subsidy to wholesale gas prices, so
something has to change, since gas prices are now so high. But there are
issues- will every supplier be happy to accept less earnings? They may drag
their feet.
The record-breaking run in power prices, particularly in
Europe, is creating a favorable investment case for solar and wind
projects, making it increasingly compelling to develop renewable assets
purely based on project economics. According to Norwegian consultancy
Rystad Energy, current spot prices in Germany, France, Italy, and the
United Kingdom would all result in payback of 12 months or less.
Considering the average monthly spot prices for August in these countries
were all well over €400/MWh and the relatively low operating costs of
renewables, investing in utility-scale projects appear to be a no-brainer.
Renew Extra 15th Oct 2022
https://renewextraweekly.blogspot.com/2022/10/renewable-booming-but-windfall-tax.html
Germany, France, Italy, conserve energy, but the UK government rejects energy conservation
In Germany, shops must keep their doors closed to avoid heat escaping on
cold days, illuminated advertising boards have to be switched off by 10pm,
and in some public swimming pools only cold showers are available.
In France, there will be no “temeparture police”, energy transition
minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher has promised, but the country’s
“sobriety” energy-savings push asks that homes and offices are not
heated above 19 degrees centigrade. Commuters are also being asked to
car-share, and mountain resorts have pledged to reduce the speed of ski
lifts at off-peak times.
Italy has launched what has been dubbed
“Operation Thermostat” – limits to the temperature that public
buildings can set the air conditioning at in the summer and the heating
during winter. People have also been encouraged to limit the duration of
showers, the time ovens are switched on, and to use the dishwasher and
washing machine only when fully loaded.
In Britain, it is sometimes easy to
forget that there is an energy crisis. As the nation grapples with yet
another implausible leap in household bills, the festive lights started
going up on London’s Oxford Street at the end of September – almost three
months before Christmas Day. That the lights have been replaced by LED
versions this year is perhaps somewhat overshadowed by the fact that there
will still be 300,000 individual bulbs on display.
As one shopper reportedly remarked: “Lights already? We don’t even know if we’ll be able
to turn ours on this Christmas.” At the heart of this strange disconnect
is the Government’s ongoing refusal to even talk about the concept of
conserving energy, never mind encourage people to turn down the thermostat.
Not even a warning of winter power cuts from the National Grid is enough to
convince the Cabinet of the merits of promoting energy conservation.
Telegraph 14th Oct 2022
Growing the economy – but growth of what?
Michael Jacobs: Liz Truss dreams of growth – but even if she pulls it off, it won’t help Britain. Fifty years ago, the landmark report The Limits to Growth warned that, unless the composition of growth was
radically changed, its environmental impacts would lead to ecological and social collapse within 100 years.
Many of the projections made by The Limits to Growth have proved prescient. Yet it is also true that developed economies have been able to “uncouple” growth from some environmental
impacts. Over the past 20 years, the UK and others have notably seen rising GDP accompanied by falling greenhouse gas emissions.
Economists have described this as “green growth”, and many have argued that this, rather than growth per se, should be governments’ goal. Some environmentalists argue that environmental sustainability does not allow for any economic growth. Only the “degrowth” of western economies, they claim, is compatible with ecological salvation (and indeed, wellbeing). Others claim that GDP could still grow in a radically greener form. But in present circumstances this is a rather arcane dispute.
Both sides agree that some parts of the economy must degrow, notably the fossil fuel sector and fossil-intensive industries, while growth is clearly needed in others, such as renewable energy and the “care economy” of health, education, social care and childcare. The real question is therefore not “growth or
not?”, but “growth of what?”
Guardian 10th Oct 2022
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/oct/10/liz-truss-dreams-growth-income-stall-gdp
Julian Assange tests positive for COVID-19
WSWS, Thomas Scripps 10 Oct 22,
Julian Assange has contracted COVID-19. He received the test result Saturday, on the day several thousand people formed a human chain around Parliament in London to protest his persecution.
His wife, Stella, told the press, “I am obviously worried about him and the next few days will be crucial for his general health. He is now locked in his cell for 24 hours a day.” She said Assange had been feeling ill throughout the week and developed a fever and cough on Friday.
Assange’s infection confirms the repeated warnings of medical professionals and his legal team that his health and life are endangered by his wrongful imprisonment. It must lend renewed urgency to the demand for his immediate release.
Just months before the pandemic, over 100 doctors signed an open letter to the British government warning that Assange’s life was at risk while he was kept in HMP Belmarsh—the UK’s top-security prison. When COVID-19 began to spread rapidly throughout Britain, one of the lead signatories, Dr Stephen Frost, told the World Socialist Web Site, “Given what we know about this case, Mrs Assange is right to be concerned. Julian Assange, because he is immuno-compromised, following years of arbitrary detention first in the Ecuadorian Embassy and latterly in Belmarsh prison, is necessarily at higher risk of contracting any viral or bacterial infection, including infection by coronavirus.
“He should be released on bail immediately, so that he can access the health care which he urgently requires. The UK government is effectively playing Russian roulette with Julian Assange’s life.”
Another doctor, Lissa Johnson, explained, “As long ago as 2015 medical and human rights experts warned that anything more than a trivial illness could prove fatal for Julian Assange. His health is even more fragile now, and the coronavirus only renders those warnings more urgent and more dire.”
She added, “If Julian Assange does succumb to coronavirus or any other catastrophic illness in prison, it will not be an accident. It will be a foreseeable result of prolonged psychological torture and wilful medical neglect.”
…………………………. By the end of October 2020, Ministry of Justice figures showed that 1,529 inmates had been infected, 600 in the previous month alone. At least 32 prisoners had been killed by the virus.
In November, a wave of infections hit Belmarsh prison. Stella Assange revealed, “I’ve been told the number of people infected with COVID on Julian’s house block is 56, including staff.” This was on a block with fewer than 200 inmates.
Assange and the other inmates were placed under an indefinite lockdown, kept in their cells 24 hours a day. His lawyer Edward Fitzgerald had warned at his bail application of the “risk to his mental health and his human contact” posed by lockdown procedures. At Assange’s extradition hearing that autumn, his defence team presented extensive medical evidence of the damage done to his mental health and of the risk of suicide.
……………………………. Nils Melzer, UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, examined Assange with a medical team inside Belmarsh Prison in May 2019 and concluded that he showed symptoms of psychological torture. He commented on his illness, “Assange’s stroke is no surprise. As we warned after examining him, unless relieved of the constant pressure of isolation, arbitrariness and persecution, his health would enter a downward spiral endangering his life. [The] UK is literally torturing him to death
Melzer added, “As Assange clearly was not medically fit to attend his own trial through videolink, how can they even discuss whether he is fit to be exposed to a show trial in the US, a country that refuses to prosecute its torturers and war criminals but persecutes whistleblowers and journalists?”
Saturday’s protest was the largest yet organised in defence of Assange, attracting a broader range of ages and social backgrounds. It indicated the potential that exists for a mass, global campaign to secure the WikiLeaks founder’s freedom and safety. ………… https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/10/10/picp-o10.html
7,000 form human chain in London to protest treatment of Assange
WSWS 9 Oct 22, Around 7,000 people formed a human chain around the Houses of Parliament in the UK Saturday, protesting the British government’s persecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
The chain ran continuously from Parliament Square along the Palace of Westminster, across Lambeth Bridge, along South Bank to Westminster bridge, then back over the Thames river to Parliament Square—roughly two miles. The event was organised by the Don’t Extradite Assange campaign.
Assange is currently held in Belmarsh maximum security prison in London. The United States government is seeking his extradition under the Espionage Act for exposing the war crimes and human rights abuses of US imperialism and its allies. It has plotted his assassination and levelled charges which carry a life sentence in solitary confinement. The WikiLeaks founder is seeking to overturn orders by the British judiciary and the home secretary approving his extradition. His legal team filed an appeal with the High Court in August.
Stella Assange, the WikiLeaks publisher’s wife, told protestors on Saturday, “Julian is suffering and part of the point of making this human chain was to show that what is happening here is not a legal process, it’s not a legitimate process. It is the instrumentalisation of the law in order to persecute a person, a journalist, in order to keep him in prison indefinitely.
“People around the world are witnessing this atrocity and that is what compels them to come here to show their solidarity, to show that they care about Julian. That they believe in justice, that they see what is happening here is a state that has committed crimes against innocent, that is now committing crimes against a journalist who exposed those crimes they committed.
“Let’s not forget that the US planned to assassinate Julian in the UK, while he was in the embassy and now they’ve put him in the harshest prison in the UK for almost four years.”
WikiLeaks editor Kristinn Hrafnsson said proceedings against Assange were “not a legal case,” because of the way the legal system has “bent itself to the demands and requests of the government… it’s appalling.”
He continued, “Julian is a political prisoner. He’s being politically persecuted. The chain around Parliament is sending a message to those inside. They are there to serve the people on the outside. And those are Julian’s supporters. Thousands of them here today, and millions around the world who know that this is a travesty.”
Labour MP and former shadow chancellor John McDonnell had the brass neck to announce, “As we go into the 18 months up to a general election, this will become a general election issue. Every MP will be asked: do you stand up for journalism, do you stand up for the rights of journalist to report freely, do you stand up for his basic human rights, do you stand up for justice?”……………………..
Reporters from the World Socialist Web Site spoke with some of the protestors……………………………………………
A number of those protesting travelled to London from other countries to do so. Mantas, who traveled from Lithuania that day to support Assange as part of the chain, told our reporters, “Assange told the truth about war crimes, and he fought for human rights and freedom of the press.”
The US and UK governments “want to make a clear and obvious example of Assange so that no-one attempts what he did. The powers that be are trying to impose their own world view, control how people think, to seduce them into thinking nothing can be done or that the world is as it’s supposed to be, when we are actually entering into wholesale madness in the world.”
He said of the war in Ukraine that the weapons manufacturers and businesses “want to promote a new war, and they don’t care about the consequences for the Ukrainian people or the Russian people. I don’t agree with Putin’s actions, but I think there was another option, but Zelensky was encouraged to take a hard line and oppose any deals from the Russian Federation.”
Listing the crimes exposed by WikiLeaks he said, “Where do you start? You can look at the video of an Apache helicopter shooting civilians. The Afghan and Iraq war logs and so on. People should look into it. There’s too much to go into herethat many crimes have been uncovered. People should look into what WikiLeaks has done what its expose and be objective about the matter.”
Assange’s case “shows that if anyone finds out something like this and tries to tell the public then they can be prosecuted for it. So obviously that can threaten everyone.” https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/10/08/chai-o08.html?fbclid=IwAR0oU-kS9VcRD34qsOcy2SC2BTcKB2CmeY6IwAoPfyc-MniCzPt3xsgXEu4
1 This Month
of the week – Shut Down Drone Warfare!
Tell the Ukrainian Government to Drop Prosecution of Peace Activist Yurii Sheliazhenko
Petition to revoke the licensing of the Near Surface Nuclear Disposal Facility (NSDF) at Chalk River. https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7247
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
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