As if by magic

Letter in the Guardian the other day:

Brian Wilson, the former energy minister, talks of the need for Britain to have indigenous energy supplies such as nuclear (Russian gas row reignites nuclear debate, January 2). As the fuel for nuclear power stations is uranium, could he let us know where the indigenous supplies of uranium are located?
Graham Jones
Bedford

Meanwhile:

Germany will review plans to close nuclear power plants at a national summit after a dispute between Russia and Ukraine cut gas shipments to Europe, Economics Minister Michael Glos said.

It'd be quite funny if it weren't so worrying. The long-term problems of conventional energy shortages and climate change have produced the most crassly short-term response possible. The complete failure of imagination on the part of New Labour and the CDU is not surprising, obviously, but do they really take us for absolute chumps?

Oh, and incidentally:

The cost of cleaning up the sites of Britain`s aging nuclear power stations could be more than $121 billion, up from an earlier estimate of $96 billion.

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, set up last April to supervise state-owned nuclear plants, says it is 'almost certain' the earlier estimate will need to be revised upward to adjust for revision and to account for additional costs resulting from a closer look at some of the older nuclear sites, reports the Independent newspaper.

Oh happy day.