Britons shrug off Japan disaster to accept nuclear power

A survey shows that Britons are less worried about nuclear power now than they were last year, before an earthquake and tsunami hit the Japanese plant. The poll was conducted in August, five months after reactors at the nuclear plant went into meltdown resulting in the release of radioactive material.

It revealed that British attitudes towards nuclear power have softened over the past decade and the trend has continued since Fukushima.

In 2005, previous research showed 59 per cent of the UK population was “fairly or very concerned” about nuclear power. This dropped to 54 per cent last year, and it now stands at 47 per cent, according to the online poll of 2,050 adults. The percentage of those listed as “not very or not at all” concerned has increased from 38 per cent in 2005, to 42 per cent last year and 45 per cent now.

The number agreeing that the benefits of nuclear outweigh the risks has also risen, from 32 per cent to 38 per cent and 41 per cent over the same time period. Those with the opposite view have shrunk from 41 per cent in 2005 to 36 per cent in 2010 and 28 per cent this year.

The new survey was conducted by Populus for the British Science Festival, taking place in Bradford next week.