The Government has formally outlined its opposition to the building of new nuclear power stations in England, citing the threat of terrorist attacks and accidents as major concerns regarding the safety of nuclear installations.
In a submission to the British government's energy review made last month, the Government said the risks associated with nuclear power greatly outweigh the benefits to the environment from lower greenhouse gas emissions.
It now looks increasingly likely that the British government's energy review will recommend the construction of a new generation of nuclear power plants.
On Tuesday British prime minister Tony Blair said the issue was back on the agenda "with a vengeance", having seen a "first cut" of the review which warned that the British economy could become 90 per cent dependent on foreign fuel imports.
However, the Irish Government's submission highlighted more than 15 concerns relating to the British nuclear industry that made it "opposed to the nuclear industry because of the risks it poses to human health, the environment and the economy, as well as the risks arising from waste and transport".
The Government said it was "a unique stakeholder since it carries responsibility for measures to protect the population of Ireland from risks arising from discharges or incidents at nuclear facilities in the United Kingdom".
Among the reasons for Irish concern over proposals to build a new generation of nuclear power stations are the "threat of terrorist attacks", "proliferation" issues, the risk from the proximity of nuclear power stations to Ireland and the transport of nuclear waste near Irish waters.
The submission also raised concerns at the operational record of Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant, including "bad management", poor training, leaks and falsification of data.
It also raised concerns that agreements by the British government to bring discharges into the Irish Sea from Sellafield to "close to zero" could be jeopardised by the construction of additional power plants.
However, the submission was criticised by Green Party energy spokesman Eamon Ryan, who said it "failed to address the broader energy issues".
He said Ireland and Britain were part of the same energy market, and the development of sufficient renewable energy resources needed high levels of support and investment in both jurisdictions.
"You need critical mass and and we need to see Britain investing massive resources in renewables for this to work. Their spending ... on nuclear makes it much more difficult for us."
He said "nothing was a done deal" in relation to a British decision on nuclear energy, and urged the Government to launch a major lobbying and public-relations campaign in Britain aimed at influencing opinion against the nuclear option.
Fine Gael environment spokesman Fergus O'Dowd called for a special Dáil debate on the issue of Britain's energy review and the possibility of additional nuclear power stations.
"An increase in British reliance on nuclear power will have nothing but harmful effects on Ireland.
"While the British government is right to analyse its energy policy, nuclear power is not the way forward.
"I would have preferred that the British prime minister hadn't pre-empted his own energy review on this vital issue."