Plan for multibillion-pound Sizewell nuclear plant a ‘terrible deal’ for UK taxpayers, MPs say

The public accounts committee has said the risk to billpayers is ‘extraordinary’

The government’s plan to fund a multibillion-pound nuclear plant at the Sizewell site in Suffolk represents a “terrible deal” for the UK taxpayer over the rest of the century, according to the government’s spending watchdog.

MPs on the public accounts committee (PAC) have warned the government that the cost of the Sizewell C nuclear reactor could spiral to almost £48bn, leaving bill payers on the hook to provide an extra £9.8bn to construct the plant before 2040 and a further £12bn over its 60-year operating life.

Taxpayers and consumers face a “high level of risk”, according to PAC, after the government agreed to take a near-45% stake in the nuclear plant, which is considered a successor project to…