Nuclear staff who lift lid on safety issues face bullying, MPs warn

Whistleblowers who try to draw attention to workplace culture and safety issues at nuclear sites face bullying, MPs have warned.

- Anna Isaac

Members of the Commons public accounts committee said they were concerned at the way people who bring to light issues with culture and safety on nuclear sites are treated.

"There is generally a problem with whistleblowing and a safety culture," said Rachel Gilmour, a Liberal Democrat MP, when questioning nuclear bosses yesterday.

"That relation between bullying and safety within a nuclear context" needs greater scrutiny, she said, adding that her office was seeking to raise the issue further with regulators.

A Guardian investigation revealed claims of bullying, sexual harassment and drug use at Sellafield, where nuclear waste is processed and stored, that could put safety at risk.