Britain has a narrow window to become a leading power in civilian maritime nuclear technology before Russia and China set global standards and dominate supply chains, a new report argues.

The report, produced by the Policy Exchange thinktank’s Nuclear Enterprise Commission, says nuclear-powered merchant ships and floating nuclear power plants are moving from technical possibility towards commercial deployment and urges the UK and the US to work together to develop “a functioning maritime nuclear cooperation programme”.

But the report, ‘Powering the Future: Leveraging the UK’s Nuclear and Maritime Heritage’, warns that deployment will depend on resolving legal and regulatory questions around safety, licensing, liability and insurability.