(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - The majority of people in Germany and Spain are against developing new nuclear power plants in their countries, according to a poll by Harris Interactive published in the Financial Times. 68 per cent of respondents in Spain—and 64 per cent in Germany—reject building new reactors.

Support for further nuclear power development is highest in Italy at 58 per cent, followed by the United States with 52 per cent, France with 49 per cent, and Britain with 45 per cent.

Germany has announced it will shut down its existing 17 nuclear reactors by 2020, while Spain will gradually close its eight nuclear plants.

On Feb. 10, Gilbert Brown—coordinator of the Nuclear Engineering Program at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell—said that many European countries will start embracing nuclear power again because there are new possibilities to deal with hazardous waste, adding, "Public concerns about safety seem to be less of an issue due to the long and excellent track record of safe operations. (...) Waste issues are addressed in Europe by countries pursuing deep geologic sequestration."

Polling Data

Do you favour or oppose building new nuclear power plants in (your country)?

Source: Harris Interactive / Financial Times
Methodology: Online interviews with 6,448 adults in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United States, conducted from Jan. 30 to Feb. 8, 2008. No margin of error was provided.

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