Irish Senator, Film Crew Barred from Sellafield Nuke Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit source - Jay Dooling News about Ireland & the Irish From the News Wires PA 11/06/01 10:55 - Copyright 2001 PA News Senator and Film Crew `Barred From Nuclear Plant' By Mark Sage, PA News An Irish Senator was today denied entry into the Sellafield nuclear power plant just two days after being invited to visit the installation to inspect safety measures. Fergus O'Dowd, of the main opposition party Fine Gael, was publicly invited to Sellafield during a meeting with British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) bosses in the Irish Republic at the weekend. But when he turned up today with a Channel 4 television crew he was not allowed in. Officials at the plant said there was not enough notice given by the film crew and another documentary team was inside the facility today. However, a spokesman for Mr O'Dowd said the television crew applied last week for permission to film today. The Senator's visit followed a meeting in Drogheda, Co Louth, on Saturday, in which BNFL head of safety John Clarke said the best way to reassure people living across the Irish Sea from the plant was by such a fact-finding mission. Fears have escalated in Ireland since the British Government gave the go-ahead for a new mixed oxide fuel (MOX) processing plant at the site, which would lead to radioactive cargos travelling through the Irish Sea. Many people in the east of Ireland are also afraid of the consequences of a terrorist attack. Ireland has set a deadline of Friday for Britain to postpone the operation of the MOX plant, otherwise it will seek an injunction from the United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Speaking outside Sellafield today, after being denied access, Mr O'Dowd said: "This raises serious questions about British Nuclear Fuels when, after issuing a public invitation to me last Saturday, they retracted it 48 hours later. "They are claiming that Channel 4 did not give them enough notice and that another camera crew is filming in the plant today. This casts a very sinister light over their relations with the Irish public. "To issue an invitation and then withdraw it once accepted is an extremely worrying and cynical exercise. If they are confident about the safety of their plant, they should be welcoming interest from the media and public in their operation." Jay Dooling (JayDooling@IrishAires.org) Irish Aires - 90.1FM KPFT in Houston http://IrishAires.org Irish Aires Email List http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Irish_Aires/emaillis.htm ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytenv-11.09.01-02:48:39-18438