London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Boris Johnson promises £700m funding in bid for new nuclear power plant

Boris Johnson promises £700m funding in bid for new nuclear power plant

In one of his final acts as prime minister, Boris Johnson confirms he has signed off the cash for the £20bn Sizewell C reactor in Suffolk.

Boris Johnson has given his support to the Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk, promising £700m of government funding for the project.

He confirmed the move during a speech from the site in one of his final acts as prime minister - and amid the rising cost of living crisis - saying he was "absolutely confident it will get over the line" in the next few weeks.

But it will be up to his successor to provide the rest of the funding to push the project through in a deal with French-owned utility firm EDF.

The government has previously said the £20bn power plant would take just under a decade to build and could power six million homes.

Mr Johnson is due to be replaced as prime minister next week when either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss is announced as his successor.

In his speech, the PM praised the history of nuclear discoveries in the UK, but asked "what happened to us?" - claiming British nuclear energy was in "paralysis".

He decried the "short termism" that he said led to no new nuclear power plants being built in the UK in nearly 30 years, while the likes of France had built four in the same timeframe.

And he criticised past leaders of both Labour and the Liberal Democrats - though not mentioning his own party's time in office - saying it had been "a chronic case of politicians not being able to see beyond the political cycle" and choosing to invest.

Mr Johnson said his government's British energy security strategy was "rectifying the chronic mistakes of the past and taking the long term decisions that it needs", adding: "We need to pull our national finger out and get on with Sizewell C.

"This project will create tens of thousands of jobs, it will also power six million homes - that is roughly a fifth of all the homes in the UK - so it'll help to fix the energy needs, not just of this generation but of the next."

'Great British nuclear campaign'


EDF, the project developer, is set to take a stake as part of efforts to remove a Chinese state-backed nuclear energy company from the project.

But campaign group Stop Sizewell said the power station was a "vanity project" for the PM that his successor should "consign to the bin".

They added: "When every penny matters, it's totally wrong to shackle the next prime minister and billions in taxpayers' money to this damaging project, whose ballooning cost, lengthy construction, failure-prone technology and long term water supply are so uncertain."

Mr Johnson said there was "no cultural aversion to nuclear power" in the UK, and the campaign group - which protested outside the site ahead of his speech - was an example of "pure nimbyism".

He added: "A baby born this year will be getting energy from Sizewell C long after she retires and this new reactor is just a part of our Great British nuclear campaign."

The GMB Union said the announcement was "a belated step in the right direction, but it should have happened years ago".

National secretary Andy Prendergast, said: "Years of political failure to make the right decision on new nuclear means we are woefully unprepared for the energy crisis facing us today.

"The government must grasp the nettle and commit to other nuclear reactors... and make sure we have the skilled workers required."

The proposed Sizewell C site in Suffolk.


The announcement comes as the government is facing growing pressure to tackle rising energy costs, with the price cap set to soar by 80% come October.

Mr Johnson has insisted it will be up to either Ms Truss or Mr Sunak to decide what help is offered to households and businesses, but he said it was "clear that come the new administration, there is going to be a further package" of support.

During a Q&A session, he added: "We have the fiscal firepower to sort it out. We do have a robust employment situation, we have the revenues coming to the Exchequer to enable us to help people.

"That gives us the strength to continue to support people."

Sizewell was the last stop on the PM's tour of the UK over his final days in office, which has seen him talking about gigabit broadband in Dorset, policing numbers in Lewisham and defence co-operation in Barrow.

Mr Johnson has been hesitant to discuss his plans for after he leaves Number 10 - his replacement will take over the shop on Tuesday - but asked what sort of ex-PM he would be, he said: "I think only time will tell is my answer on that one.

"But my intention and what I certainly will do is give my full and unqualified support to whoever takes over from me.

"Otherwise, really to get on with life."

Either Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak will be announced as the new PM on Monday, and take over Number 10 on Tuesday


And the PM had advice for the next resident of Downing Street: "I think it'd be fair to say this government has not shirked the big decisions.

"We've raised our eyes, we've looked to the horizon and I just say, whoever follows me next, I know that they will do the same.

"So no more national myopia, no more short-termism, let's think about the future, let's think about our kids and our grandchildren, about the next generation.

"And so I say to you, with the prophetic candour and clarity of one who is about to hand over the torch of office, I say go nuclear and go large and go with Sizewell C."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
After 200,000 Orders in 2 Minutes: Xiaomi Accelerates Marketing in Europe
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×