sqrrl101

"the big one for me is that nuclear is slow to get approval and build: way too slow for the urgency of our energy needs or our need to cut carbon emissions"

I would posit that this fact is at least partially the fault of groups such as yours, who have engaged in fear-mongering over the risks of nuclear power for decades, leading to excessively strict radiation emission regulations. If The Greens were truly interested in reducing carbon emissions and following the evidence, you would have recognised that the actual harm caused nuclear pales in comparison to the deaths caused by fossil fuel emissions.

Thank you for your excellent work, Prof. Nutt. As a neuroscience student and advocate of drug law reform, I'm constantly impressed by your efforts to inject some perspective and rationality into a debate that is too often governed by polarised views and faulty evidence.

My question is on a slight tangent from recreational drugs - what're your opinions on pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement, i.e. "smart drugs" such as modafinil (provigil) and methylphenidate (ritalin)? Do you think that people should have easier legal access to them than they do currently? Do you think a relaxation in the regulatory authorities' proscription of cognitive enhancers and similar "lifestyle" drugs might result in development of safer and more efficacious non-medical pharmaceuticals?

Yes, it does, which is why I said "at least partially". A substantial part of the overall planning process is safety and site planning reviews, both of which take longer due to extremely stringent regulations imposed by the UKAEA, which have been heavily influenced by paranoia over benign levels of radiation.

/u/TheGreenParty - I would very much like an answer on this issue. AR428 says that you wish to ban the entire practice of xenotransplantation. If this were enacted, many people would likely die from lack of things like pig-derived heart valves. As immunology and transplant technology in general improves, xenotransplantation offers an excellent solution for the chronic organ shortage.

Why should thousands of patients die because of your party's baseless assertion that xenotransplantation prioritises "corporate profit ... over public health and the rights of nonhuman animals"?

Why is there a :( "smiley" face on the Windows 8 BSOD?