Prospect National Secretary, David Luxton, said: "The Minister is proceeding with undue haste. Having announced on Wednesday that he was embarking on a consultation process about transferring responsibility for nuclear waste from Nirex to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, it has now become apparent that he has allowed less than a fortnight for views and comments on that proposal.

"This is not an open or transparent consultation process and leaves insufficient time for all stakeholders to make their views known before the Minister proceeds to implementation during November. David Miliband has publicly stated that he wants to treat employees fairly and move forward with clarity and consensus, in which case he should extend the consultation period for the future of Nirex and all its employees."

Prospect is now actively seeking a meeting with David Miliband to discuss issues relating to his announcement. The union represents over half the employees within Nirex based at Harwell, Oxfordshire.