The UK-based Nuclear Industry Association has welcomed chancellor Rachel Reeves’ endorsement of a recent nuclear regulatory review in her budget speech, in which she described the report as “an ambitious plan to cut the red tape that has tied our nuclear industry in knots for decades.”

The government confirmed that it accepts the principle of all the recommendations and will publish a full implementation plan within three months.

The report, published earlier this week by a task force set up by prime minister Keir Starmer, warned that the UK has become the most expensive country in the world to build a nuclear power station because of overly complex and misunderstood environmental, safety and bureaucratic processes, according to a government review.