Nuclear power will top agenda at Sarkozy and Brown summit

Published on Thursday 27 March 2008 09:15

NUCLEAR power will top the agenda at a UK-France summit between Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy today.

On the second and final day of the French president's state visit, the two countries are expected to seal agreement on co-operation in the development of a new generation of nuclear power stations in the UK. At a glittering state banquet held in his honour at Windsor Castle last night, Mr Sarkozy told the Queen, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and a host of dignitaries that to have an influence on the destiny of the world, France and the UK had to unite.

He said: "We have to unite our two countries to recover the influence which was theirs for such a long time." Also under discussion at today's summit, taking place at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium, will be the global economic crisis, defence co-operation and reform of international institutions.

As Mr Sarkozy made clear in his address to parliament yesterday, Franco-British relations are once again "cordiale", after years of coldness sparked in no small part by his predecessor Jacques Chirac's opposition to the Iraq War. Mr Sarkozy made clear he was relying on British support to push through an agenda focused on climate change, energy, immigration and defence during the six-month French presidency of the EU beginning in July.

Speaking on the day when Business Secretary John Hutton called for a significant expansion in Britain's nuclear power production, the president said both the UK and France had "opted resolutely" for nuclear energy, to secure future supplies and to cut carbon emissions.

Today's talks are expected to see agreement that Britain will draw on French expertise to build a new generation of nuclear plants.