Correspondence

Letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer regarding implementation of the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce Review

Published 16 September 2026

Applies to England

To: Rt Hon John Healey, Chancellor of the Exchequer  

Date: 11 September 2026

Implementing the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce Review

Thank you for the government’s letter of 13 March 2026 regarding implementation of the Nuclear Regulatory Review (the Review). We fully support the Review’s ambition to improve the pace, predictability and proportionality of nuclear regulation while maintaining high standards of environmental protection and public confidence.

We have therefore established a Nuclear Transformation Programme to coordinate delivery of the Review’s recommendations, particularly those relating to organisational effectiveness, culture, proportionality and regulatory coordination. In taking forward the Review, we have identified opportunities to:

• reduce complexity within governance, assurance and regulatory processes

• improve accountability, decision making and escalation of nationally significant issues

• strengthen our approach to risk appetite, proportionality and regulatory judgement

• improve the pace, consistency and predictability of regulatory delivery

• adopt a more systems-based approach to regulation, recognising wider programme and national priorities alongside site-specific considerations

• better align our resources and expertise to support nationally significant priorities, sustainable growth and environmental protection

We have already taken significant steps to strengthen our delivery by bringing our nuclear strategy and regulatory functions together under a single leadership structure reporting to the Chief Regulator. This provides clearer accountability, faster decision-making and stronger strategic oversight, ensuring the Environment Agency is better positioned to support the safe growth of the UK nuclear sector while maintaining high environmental standards.

We are gaining practical experience in many of the approaches advocated by the Review through Defra’s Lead Environmental Regulator (LER) ^{[footnote 1]}. In response to the Review’s recommendations on regulator arrangements, the Environment Agency became the LER for the Sizewell C project in April 2026. The pilot is testing new approaches to coordination across Defra regulators, including major issue escalation, issue resolution, proportionality and developer engagement, while maintaining the independence of individual regulators. This has made a promising start, and we and Sizewell C are seeing benefits from the LER approach from the outset, for example successful early submission of the main site dewatering licence and progressing critical water supply approvals, improving operational resilience and water security.

The learning generated will inform implementation of the Review’s recommendations on lead regulator arrangements and the development of the Lead Nuclear Regulator (LNR) model. The pilot phase concludes in December 2026, with final evaluation scheduled for April 2027.

Waste management and disposal are being advanced as critical enablers for both future nuclear development and legacy site remediation. Progress includes strengthened approaches to site release and disposal (GRR), more proportionate waste regulation, support for national radioactive waste infrastructure, and innovative reuse and disposal solutions. Together, these measures are improving regulatory certainty, reducing cost and delay, and enabling safer, more efficient delivery across the nuclear lifecycle.

Successful implementation of the Review will depend not only on organisational and regulatory reform, but also on sustained behavioural and cultural change across government, regulators and industry. Strong leadership by regulators and industry Chief Executives and coordination across government will be essential to ensure reforms are implemented consistently and effectively. Achieving this will require regulators to be equipped and empowered to make proportionate, evidence-based decisions on acceptable risk. The pace and scale of reform will place demands on specialist capability and capacity across the sector. For the Environment Agency, securing sufficient nuclear expertise to deliver these reforms alongside our existing regulatory responsibilities will be critical.

The actions set out in Appendix A describe how these changes are being translated into delivery across the Environment Agency’s regulatory functions.

Maintaining momentum

The Review presents a unique opportunity to modernise nuclear regulation by improving pace, predictability and proportionality while maintaining high standards of environmental protection and public trust. The Environment Agency has already implemented important changes and is committed to the further transformative change delivering the outcomes envisaged by the Review through a more coordinated, risk-informed and outcome-focused approach to regulation.

The Environment Agency supports an approach that enables nationally significant nuclear investment to deliver both national priorities and local benefits, in a way that is consistent with and supportive of the government’s devolution agenda. Through effective partnership working and place-based delivery, we can help unlock economic growth, create skilled jobs, strengthen regional resilience, and maximise long-term value for communities across the country.

We look forward to supporting delivery of the government’s wider objectives for growth, energy security, resilience and environmental protection.

I am copying this letter to the Office for Nuclear Regulation, Natural Resources Wales, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, and relevant ministers and senior officials in Defra and DESNZ.

Yours sincerely,

Philip Duffy  

Chief Executive, Environment Agency

Copies of this letter were sent to:

• Mike Finnerty, Chief Executive and Chief Nuclear Inspector, Office for Nuclear Regulation

• Ceri Davies, Chief Executive, Natural Resources Wales

• Nicole Paterson, Chief Executive, Scottish Environment Protection Agency

• Lee McDonough, Director General, Net Zero, Nuclear and International, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

• The Rt Hon Dame Angela Eagle DBE MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

• Paul Kissack, Permanent Secretary, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

• The Rt Hon Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero

• Jonathan Brearley, Permanent Secretary, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

• Michael Shanks MP, Minister of State, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Appendix A: Detailed Response to the Chancellor’s Questions

How you, your organisation and your supply chain plan to improve the timely and cost-effective delivery of the government’s nuclear programme while maintaining safe outcomes

Strengthening delivery through governance, leadership and accountability

The integration of our nuclear strategy and regulatory functions into a single directorate provides a clearer structure for delivery of regulatory and advisory services to the nuclear sector. Under the leadership of a single Nuclear Director, the Environment Agency is better able to coordinate its specialist radioactive substances regulation expertise with wider environmental regulation, including water resources, air quality and flood risk. This provides a clearer and more effective interface for the sector while improving internal coordination and accountability.

In addition, we are creating a dedicated Deputy Director for the Nuclear Transformation role to accelerate implementation of these improvements and ensure that changes to governance, capability and ways of working are translated into measurable improvements in regulatory delivery. This work is being coordinated across Environment Agency functions and with partner regulators, including the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and Natural Resources Wales (NRW), to ensure that improvements are delivered through a single, integrated programme of change.

Applying lessons learned to improve delivery

Experience from the Acoustic Fish Deterrent at Hinkley Point C demonstrated the importance of identifying and addressing nationally significant issues earlier, particularly where multiple organisations and regulatory frameworks are involved.

In response, we have strengthened escalation routes, oversight arrangements and integrated working across regulators and Environment Agency functions focusing on energy security, defence or major infrastructure delivery. This includes the LER and LNR models, helping ensure that cross-cutting issues are identified, considered and resolved collectively, with direct routes to Executive Director and Chief Executive level where required.

Efficient delivery of the government’s nuclear programme depends not only on new build, but also on timely decommissioning and future reuse of sites. Consistent with the Review’s recommendations on decommissioning and waste management, we are strengthening implementation of the Guidance on Requirements for Release from Radioactive Substances Regulation (GRR)^{[footnote 2]} by improving guidance, assessment approaches and regulatory support. This provides greater clarity on regulatory expectations and supports the delivery of optimised site end state and waste management strategies. We have sought feedback from operators to identify opportunities to improve the GRR process and this work is continuing through a learning from experience project led by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).

Further development of our enabling role in delivering our dual mission

 We have a dual mission and statutory duty to protect and enhance the environment as a whole, while contributing to sustainable development and economic growth. Our 2025 strategy^{[footnote 3]} recognises that this requires us to enable growth in ways that respect environmental limits. We have therefore adopted an enabling and advisory role in our interactions with the nuclear sector and plan to strengthen this role, supporting the wider societal benefits the sector can deliver while managing environmental and radiological risks effectively.

Recognising the critical role of national radioactive waste infrastructure, we are working with the ONR to apply the LNR model and with other partners such as the Sellafield G6^{[footnote 4]} to support infrastructure development. This will help ensure the sector has access to the waste infrastructure needed throughout the nuclear lifecycle, including current operations, decommissioning and future new facilities. We plan to underpin this work with a joint vision, principles and delivery framework for deployment of the LNR concept, helping to improve coordination where multiple regulators are involved.

To deliver effective and efficient regulatory compliance and enhance environmental performance, we continue to promote the exchange of personnel between regulators, government and nuclear-sector companies. Recent examples include secondments to Great British Energy Nuclear and Sizewell C, helping build capacity, strengthen relationships and support more effective regulatory outcomes.

What changes you are making to your or others’ processes and systems that will improve pace, proportionality and coordination, especially measures which will adopt a more proportionate approach to risks that are already within robust legal limits

Proportionate regulation and regulatory flexibility

Consistent with the Review’s emphasis on proportionality, we are working with industry and other stakeholders to promote a shared understanding of the radiological protection principle of optimisation^{[footnote 5]}. Optimisation requires an appropriate balance between risks and benefits and should not be interpreted as a requirement to minimise radiation exposures at all costs below the statutory limits. Consistent with this approach, we are reviewing regulatory requirements and guidance to ensure they remain clear and support a risk-informed approach to regulation.

Following a consultation last year, we are finalising our updated guidance on requirements for authorisation of radioactive waste disposal facilities^{[footnote 6]}. Working with DESNZ, we are revising guidance to align with the Ways of Working principles to guide the application of As Low As Reasonable Practicable (ALARP) and Best Available Techniques (BAT)^{[footnote 7]}, with further updates planned as implementation of the Review progresses. In parallel, we are working with DESNZ and the organisations we regulate to understand whether changes can be made to the regulatory framework for liquid radioactive wastes containing very low levels of radioactivity and anticipate bringing forward proposals later this year. At Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C, we have adopted a more proportionate approach to annual reporting on organisational development. As organisational changes are routinely discussed through ongoing regulatory engagement, we now accept a concise annual summary letter in place of a detailed annual report, while retaining the ability to request further information if needed. The operator has confirmed that this has reduced duplication and unnecessary reporting requirements, while maintaining regulatory oversight, permit compliance and a formal compliance record.

Proportionate regulation is also enabling more practical and sustainable outcomes in the management of radioactive waste and materials. Proportionate solutions to conventional waste regulatory issues such as storage restrictions and the beneficial reuse of waste are being developed and trialled. Teams from across the Environment Agency are working with the nuclear and waste sectors to resolve these issues. A practical example is the reuse of 17,000 tonnes of concrete from the decommissioning of Sizewell A for construction at Sizewell C. Working with the operators, we facilitated the beneficial reuse of material that would otherwise have been treated as waste, reducing carbon emissions, avoiding the need for new aggregate and lowering project costs while maintaining appropriate environmental controls.

Improving coordination across environmental regulation

 We recognise that delays and delivery risks affecting nuclear projects may arise from multiple regulatory regimes. This reflects the Review’s findings on regulatory fragmentation and the need for better coordination across the system. In response, we are strengthening coordination across these regulatory interfaces. Our central Nuclear New Build Programme Team already supports coordination and consistency across projects in local areas and provides a strong link between our permitting teams and specialists in other Environment Agency functions such as planning, water resources, habitats assessment and flooding. This ensures issues are identified earlier, improves coordination and supports more timely regulatory decisions. Dan Corry’s review of Defra’s regulatory landscape highlighted the need for better coordination, greater proportionality and more outcome focused regulation. The LER model, developed following the Corry Review, is now being piloted on major projects including Sizewell C. The lead regulator is selected according to the nature of the project and the most significant regulatory interests involved. The pilot is evaluating the effectiveness of the LER model in improving coordination, clarifying ownership, reducing duplication and supporting timely issue resolution. The LER model has already realised key successes on the Sizewell C project. This includes enhanced pre-application engagement enabling a critical dewatering abstraction licence application to be made a month earlier than planned. The increased certainty in securing a timely licence significantly helps de-risk the planned deep excavations for the Sizewell C reactor buildings.

We are modernising and simplifying our permitting service through the Accelerated Permitting Transformation Programme^{[footnote 8]}. This includes improvements to guidance, digital services, policy and end-to-end permitting processes, supported by proportionate governance and more efficient ways of working. Together, these reforms are intended to improve the pace, consistency and predictability of permitting decisions while maintaining high standards of environmental protection.

We are digitally transforming our permitting service. ‘Apply for and Manage#, a new digital service, allows businesses to submit and manage environmental permit applications online for the first time, reducing administrative burden for both applicants and regulators. We now offer a Priority Tracked Service^{[footnote 9]} to help coordinate pre-application advice and decisions for large or complex projects. This service has successfully been used by Sizewell C Ltd and EDF Nuclear Generation Ltd. For EDF, the water discharge and combustion activity permitting associated with the transfer of Hinkley Point B to Nuclear Restoration Services was completed in eight weeks, within proposed timeframes and ahead of the proposed transfer date.

Reducing delivery risk through regulatory engagement

Across the nuclear lifecycle, engagement before formal regulatory submissions helps improve pace and predictability by clarifying regulatory expectations, identifying significant issues early and reducing avoidable rework during formal assessments. Building on learning from recent

 Generic Design Assessment (GDA) and work through the Lead Nuclear Regulator Group, we are streamlining reactor evaluation, introducing greater flexibility in assessment routes and making increased use of trusted international regulatory reviews, including through the UK-US Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy^{[footnote 10]}. Proposed changes to the GDA framework and a joint regulator policy on leveraging international regulatory assessments will help reduce duplication and accelerate GDA while maintaining high standards of safety, security and environmental protection.

Through these reforms, we are aiming to reduce GDA timescales by up to 50% and create a more flexible and predictable regulatory pathway from early engagement through to construction. Experience from organisations such as Rolls-Royce and TerraPower demonstrates the value of early engagement in supporting efficient project delivery.

We are applying the same principles to decommissioning and site end state decisions. Through our guidance on decommissioning^{[footnote 11]} and surrender of the environmental permit (GRR), we are engaging with operators before formal applications are submitted to clarify requirements, improve the quality of submissions and reduce avoidable delay during determination. Current applications at Winfrith, Harwell and GE Healthcare are helping us test and refine our approach to on-site disposal decisions and releasing sites from regulation. We are also working with NRW in the application of an innovative pilot permitting approach at Trawsfynydd.

This is supporting Nuclear Restoration Services in developing an application for a permit variation to enable on-site disposal of decommissioning waste as part of an optimised decommissioning strategy. The work will generate valuable learning that will inform future guidance, assessment tools and regulatory approaches for decommissioning projects.

What measures your organisation will take to respond to the cultural issues identified within the taskforce’s report

Culture

 Sustained cultural change, a stronger systems perspective and a growth mindset will require ongoing leadership and continuous improvement across our regulatory functions and the sector. We recognise that cultural change is most effective when senior leaders across the sector establish shared expectations and reinforce consistent behaviours. We are therefore committed to working with senior leaders across the sector to drive this cultural change and support a common approach to delivery.

Working with ONR, we are developing a common understanding of the cultural and behavioural changes needed to support proportionate and confident regulation. We recognise that many of the cultural issues identified by the Review relate to confidence in decision-making, regulatory judgement and proportionality.

Through the Nuclear Transformation Programme, we are strengthening the capability and support available to staff to help them make timely, evidence-based decisions on acceptable risk. A recent example is the formation of the GRR Technical Group to support inspectors, provide peer review and improve consistency in complex regulatory decisions.

We are also drawing on wider Environment Agency people and capability initiatives, including increased investment in training, development and professional capability, to strengthen specialist expertise, leadership and career development within our nuclear regulatory workforce.

Strengthening collaboration with UK and international organisations

 We continue to work closely with ONR and NRW, sharing regulatory expertise and delivering joint regulatory activities, including GDA. Through our service level agreement with NRW, we provide specialist technical support for existing facilities and to support future nuclear deployment in Wales. In response to recommendation 42 of the Review, international engagement helps accelerate nuclear deployment and decommissioning by reducing duplication and making better use of specialist regulatory capability. We are therefore developing an international strategy and are actively supporting DESNZ to develop a joint Government and Regulator International Strategy and Action Plan.

A key objective will be to ensure international engagement is strategically prioritised and focused on activities that support UK growth, energy security, safety and environmental protection. We are applying the principles of the LNR model to reactor assessment by bringing together the roles of the Environment Agency, ONR and, where relevant, NRW into a single assessment project with a one-team approach and a single point of contact for applicants.

To support this, we are modifying the GDA process, aiming for a single regulatory output to reduce duplication and avoid conflicting regulatory requirements. We are also updating guidance to support a more integrated regulatory journey from early engagement through to construction and operation. We expect these changes to deliver both time and cost savings for industry.

Through the UK-US Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy, regulators have committed to making greater use of international regulatory assessments and working more closely together on the assessment of new reactor technologies^{[footnote 12]}. This approach also supports the accelerated assessment pathways being developed for advanced reactor designs such as TerraPower’s Natrium technology.

We also continue to play an active role in international organisations including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency and multilateral forums, helping to influence international standards and share regulatory learning relevant to UK priorities. A recent example is our contribution to the development of the IAEA Safety Standard on Long Term Post Remediation Management of Areas Affected by Past Activities or Events, which supports the UK’s work on proportionate regulatory control and long-term management of remediated sites.

What savings you expect this to produce in terms of both time and cost

Benefits realisation and evaluation

 The reforms arising from the Review represent a significant change in how we regulate and support the delivery of nuclear projects. Consistent with the government’s implementation programme, we are establishing a structured benefits realisation and evaluation framework to assess the impact of the reforms and support continuous improvement during implementation. A benefits baseline is being developed to underpin this work, informed by HM Treasury’s Magenta Book principles. The framework will assess benefits relating to the timeliness, predictability, coordination and proportionality of regulation, alongside wider outcomes supporting growth, environmental protection and public confidence. It will be supported by appropriate governance, ownership and reporting arrangements, enabling benefits to be monitored, evidenced and reported transparently to government.

These approaches are already being applied through the LER pilot programme and will be embedded within the Nuclear Transformation Programme as implementation of the Review progresses. We are working jointly with the ONR to align benefits realisation, monitoring and evaluation arrangements, helping ensure benefits are measured consistently across the regulatory system and avoiding duplication or double counting of shared outcomes.

Time and cost savings

 Our Accelerated Permitting Transformation Programme has delivered measurable improvements in permitting performance across the Environment Agency. Queue times are at a three-year low, and the backlog has been reduced by over three-quarters, greatly reducing delays. In addition, enhanced validation has cut determination times for complex applications by up to 100 days. Permitting achieved an overall 6% improvement in performance in 2025 to 2026 with 80% of applications determined within target timescales. This work is part of building a modern, agile regulatory system that protects the environment and supports the country’s future. By October 2028, we are aiming for 95% of permits to be determined within target timescales. This supports the government’s growth ambitions, including HMT’s Regulation Action Plan and the Corry Review and contributes to government’s commitment to cut administrative costs for business by 25% by the end of this Parliament.

Generic design assessment provides one of the strongest early opportunities to realise the benefits of these reforms. The intended reduction in assessment timescales is expected to generate associated efficiencies for both regulators and developers, alongside improved predictability for project delivery. The extent to which these benefits are realised will be evaluated as implementation progresses. Current analysis suggests that, for mature reactor designs supported by stable, high-quality information, the proposed reforms could reduce regulatory assessment costs by approximately 20% in cash terms.

Associated savings are also expected to be realised by ‘requesting parties’ through reduced assessment effort, shorter project timescales and improved predictability. Decommissioning also presents significant opportunities for savings. For example, we are playing a leading role in efforts to improve and simplify the regulatory framework for the final stages of nuclear decommissioning, which is expected to save the taxpayer around £500 million over the next 20 years^{[footnote 13]}. Further opportunities will continue to be identified, refined and evidenced as implementation progresses.

1. Environment Agency blog: Coordinating regulation for major infrastructure through Lead Environmental Regulator pilots ↩

2. Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) guidance: Guidance on Requirements for Release from Radioactive Substances Regulation (PDF) ↩

3. EA2030: change for a better environment ↩

4. The Sellafield G6 is a strategic leadership group comprising the key government, regulatory and delivery organisations responsible for the safe, secure and accelerated decommissioning and hazard reduction of the Sellafield site. ↩

5. This includes ensuring that radiation exposures are as low as reasonably achievable, taking socio-economic and environmental factors into account. ↩

6. Geological disposal facilities on land for solid radioactive wastes ↩

7. Ways of working principles to guide the application of ALARP and BAT in the nuclear industry ↩

8. Environment Agency blog: Improving our environmental permitting service ↩

9. Request environmental permit coordination for major projects ↩

10. Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) guidance: Improving design assessment for new nuclear power stations ↩

11. Guidance on Radioactive Substances Regulation (RSR) for nuclear sites undergoing decommissioning ↩

12. Office for Nuclear Regulation news article on new frameworks to streamline reactor design assessment for nuclear power stations ↩

13. Energy Security Bill factsheet: Proposals to amend the regulatory framework for the final stages of nuclear decommissioning ↩