UK Act of Parliament 1965 United Kingdom

Nuclear Installations Act 1965

An Act to consolidate the Nuclear Installations Acts 1959 and 1965.

Read the Act on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)
Enforced by
ONR
Status
Amended (in force with amendments)
Penalty ceiling
Imprisonment 3 of 20 obligations carry an unlimited fine. 5 carry different penalties and 12 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Does it bind you?

Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.

Any Person9 Licence Holder3 Operator2 Director or Officer1

Plus 5 duties on the regulator, Crown ministers and public bodies — folded into the section list below.

Other Acts binding the same actors

If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.

Any Person — also bound by 2340 other Acts
Licence Holder — also bound by 225 other Acts
Operator — also bound by 746 other Acts
Director or Officer — also bound by 429 other Acts
Companies Act 2006 126 duties

What it requires

Sections creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1

0 of 2 sections shown
2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.001 Restriction of certain nuclear installations to licensed sites (opens in a new tab)
s.002 Prohibition of certain operations except under permit. (opens in a new tab)
Part 2

3 of 4 sections shown
s.004 Attachment of conditions to licences (opens in a new tab) Imprisonment
  • Breach of nuclear site licence conditionsAny Person
s.005 Revocation and surrender of licences (opens in a new tab) Imprisonment
  • Breach of directions following licence cancellation or surrenderAny Person
s.006 Maintenance of list of licensed sites and relevant disposal sites (opens in a new tab) Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Government must maintain and publish a list of licensed nuclear sitesCrown / Minister / Government department
1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.003 Grant and variation of nuclear site licences (opens in a new tab)
Part 3

6 of 9 sections shown
s.007 Duty of licensee of licensed site. (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Prevent injury, property damage, or environmental harm from nuclear matterLicence Holder

Unlimited fine

s.007 Excluded disposal sites: acceptance of disqualifying matter Regulated
  • Notify and remove disqualifying waste from excluded disposal sitesOperator
s.008 Duty of Authority. (opens in a new tab) Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Nuclear Authority must meet nuclear site safety duties for its premisesStatutory regulator
s.009 Duty of Crown in respect of certain sites. (opens in a new tab) Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Government departments must meet nuclear safety and liability standardsCrown / Minister / Government department
s.010 Duty of certain foreign operators. (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Foreign nuclear operators must prevent radiation damage and environmental harmOperator
s.011 Duty of persons causing nuclear matter to be carried. (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Prevent injury and damage when transporting nuclear matterAny Person

Unlimited fine

3 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.007 Occurrences not on a licensed site
s.007 Duties in respect of relevant disposal sites
s.007 Excluded disposal sites
Part 4

1 of 4 sections shown
s.013 Damage to property and measures of reinstatement Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Courts must adjust property damage claims for environmental restoration benefitTribunal / Court
3 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.012 Right to compensation .... (opens in a new tab)
s.013 Exclusion, extension or reduction of compensation in certain cases. (opens in a new tab)
s.014 Protection for ships and aircraft. (opens in a new tab)
Part 5

1 of 12 sections shown
s.017 Notice to the Secretary of State of proceedings Regulated
  • Notify the Secretary of State if you start legal proceedingsAny Person
11 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.015 Time for bringing claims under ss. 7 to 11. (opens in a new tab)
s.016 Satisfaction of claims by virtue of ss. 7 to 10. (opens in a new tab)
s.016 Section 16: supplementary
s.016 Section 16: CSC-related definitions
s.016 Section 16: phasing of increases in liability
s.016 Jurisdiction of courts in the United Kingdom
s.017 Jurisdiction, shared liability and foreign judgments. (opens in a new tab)
s.017 Right of the Secretary of State to intervene
s.017 Right of a foreign government to intervene
s.017 Proceedings conducted by foreign governments
s.017 Powers of Secretary of State in relation to foreign claims
Part 6

4 of 6 sections shown
s.019 Cover for licensee’s or operator’s liability. (opens in a new tab) Imprisonment
  • Failure to maintain financial insurance for nuclear liabilityAny Person
s.020 Furnishing of information relating to licensee’s or operator’s cover. (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Notify the regulator if nuclear insurance claims reach 60% of the limitLicence Holder
s.020 Statement on arrangements Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must report to Parliament on nuclear insurance arrangementsCrown / Minister / Government department
s.021 Supplementary provisions with respect to cover for compensation in respect of carriage. (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Failure to provide nuclear insurance/guarantor documents during transportAny Person

Fine up to £1,000

2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.018 General cover for compensation by virtue of ss. 7 to 10. (opens in a new tab)
s.020 Power to make arrangements with respect to licensee’s or operator’s cover
Part 7

4 of 13 sections shown
s.022 Reporting of and inquiries into dangerous occurrences (opens in a new tab) Imprisonment
  • Fail to report a dangerous nuclear occurrence without delayAny Person
s.024 (1) The Secretary of State may appoint as inspectors for... (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Repay inspection and related costs when required by the Secretary of StateLicence Holder
s.024 Recovery of expenses by Health and Safety Executive ONR Regulated
  • Repay ONR expenses related to nuclear site licence applications and researchAny Person
s.025 Offences—general. (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Company and officer liability for nuclear offencesDirector or Officer
9 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.023 Registration in connection with certain occurrences and events. (opens in a new tab)
s.025 Orders.
s.025 Amounts in euros
s.025 Special drawing rights
s.026 Interpretation. (opens in a new tab)
s.027 Northern Ireland. (opens in a new tab)
s.028 Channel Islands. Isle of Man, etc. (opens in a new tab)
s.029 Repeals and savings. (opens in a new tab)
s.030 Short title and commencement. (opens in a new tab)
Schedules

Schedules

1 of 21 shown
s.001 Security Provisions Applicable by Order under S.2 (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Comply with security directions and restrict site accessAny Person

Unlimited fine

20 other schedules
s.002 Inquiries under section 22(10) relating to occurrences in Northern Ireland (opens in a new tab)
s.sch001 In this Schedule “the specified body corporate”, in relation to...
s.sch001 Security Provisions Applicable by Order under S.2
s.sch001 (1) Every site to which a permit applies shall, for...
s.sch001 Security Provisions Applicable by Order under S.2
s.sch001 (1) The specified body corporate shall comply with any directions...
s.sch001 (1) Except with the consent of the Minister the specified...
s.sch001 In the application of this Schedule to Northern Ireland—
s.sch001a Measures of reinstatement outside the United Kingdom
s.sch001a Measures of reinstatement
s.sch001a Persons able to take measures
s.sch001a Approval of measures of reinstatement
s.sch002 An inquiry in pursuance of a direction under section 22(10)...
s.sch002 The Minister may pay to the person appointed to hold...
s.sch002 The person appointed to hold the inquiry (hereafter in this...
s.sch002 The court shall, for the purposes of the inquiry, have...
s.sch002 A person attending as a witness before the court shall...
s.sch002 The court shall make a report to the Secretary of...
s.sch002 If any person— (a) without reasonable excuse (proof whereof shall...
s.sch002 Inquiries under section 22(10) relating to occurrences in Northern Ireland
8 other provisions
s.011 Cost of measures of reinstatement
s.011 Approval of measures of reinstatement
s.011 Representations
s.011 Appeals against decisions
s.011 Measures of reinstatement in the United Kingdom: claims under relevant foreign law
s.011 Measures of reinstatement outside the United Kingdom: claims under this Act
s.011 Loss of income derived from the environment
s.011 Cost of preventive measures

Help complying

Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.

Working in the civil nuclear industry

Regulatory compliance requirements for businesses operating in the civil nuclear industry including site licensing, security vetting, liability insurance, and decommissioning obligations under …
1 more guide that reference this instrument
Set up and run a safe metal production plant

Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.