A £2BILLION budget has been given to Sellafield Ltd for the forthcoming year – an increase of £100 million on last year’s figure.

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has secured the sum for the 2016/17 financial year as part of the Government’s Spending Review.

Sellafield Ltd says the figure “underlines the NDA’s commitment” to progressing the site’s clean-up. However critics – including the influential Public Accounts Committee – have previously expressed “astonishment” at the levels of cash being spent on site.

John Clarke, chief executive of the NDA, said: “This level of funding for Sellafield reflects tremendous support from government and this will enable us to make vital progress on cleaning up the high hazard facilities, particularly the legacy ponds and silos.

“But we have made an unequivocal commitment to government that in return we will expect Sellafield Ltd to place the greatest possible emphasis on value for money.”

From April 1, the NDA will take ownership of Sellafield Ltd from Nuclear Management Partners.

Paul Foster, Sellafield Ltd’s managing director, said: “We must repay the trust shown in us by investing our budget in a way that delivers safe, secure and cost-effective progress on site as well as a return for the taxpayer and the greatest possible contribution to local economic growth.

“Although this represents increased funding for the site, the scope of work we need to deliver in 2016/17 will outstrip our budget unless we drive greater efficiency into everything we do.

“This means doing more for less and ensuring we are extracting the maximum value possible from the budget we are given.”