Nuclear clean-up civil servants told to use their 'privilege as a force for good' in race workshop

The session aims to explore themes of privilege, intersectionality, and racial barriers in the workplace.

The workshop is hosted by the NDA’s Diversity & Inclusion Centre of Excellence in collaboration with Business in the Community, a charitable organisation focused on corporate responsibility.

According to the invitation sent to civil servants, the session will delve into the organisation’s "Race at Work charter commitments" and encourage participants to use their "privilege as a force for good."

Connor Tomlinson, cultural commentator, told GB News: “This demented obsession with socially engineering equal outcomes across identity groups is a dangerous distraction from the business of state.”

“No sane justification can be given for prioritising racial grievances over nuclear engineering, especially when Britain's nuclear capacity is already sorely lacking.”

“The legislation which enforces this DEI dogma, namely the Equality Act, should be repealed, and the civil servants administering these struggle sessions dismissed at the earliest available opportunity.”

The UK's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority is responsible for safely cleaning up and dismantling the country’s nuclear power stations, and managing radioactive waste.

The nuclear clean up staff were warned that the “event will cover topics related to race equality, including discussions on discrimination and personal experiences of racial injustice, which some colleagues may find upsetting.”

Officials were told to “please take care of your well-being and feel free to step out if you need a break” ahead of the workshop.

The invitation sent to hundreds of officials outlines a series of topics to be covered during the event, including “concepts of intersectionality and privilege, to understand how they can shape an individual's experience of the workplace and barriers that come from these”.

Invitees were told that the session will be recorded for future viewing, although interactive segments, designed to create a "safe space for feedback", will not be included in the recording.

Ben Habib, the former Deputy Leader of Reform, said: “Before the Nuclear Decommissioning Agency starts decommissioning power plants, it must decommission its department on DEI!”

“Taxpayer and government finances are already stretched to their limits, dealing with nuclear waste is already an expensive exercise.”

“Every pound spent on DEI is a pound out of your back pocket and added to that waste.”

Anna McGovern, a political commentator and journalist, said: “It’s frustrating to see taxpayer money being wasted on things like this.”

“The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has a serious job to do - cleaning up nuclear sites and keeping people safe - and yet they’re spending time and resources on workshops about “white privilege” and “intersectionality.” This has nothing to do with their actual work and just feels like pushing an ideological agenda.”

“These kinds of sessions are divisive and unnecessary. Civil servants should be focused on their jobs, not dragged into politicised training that doesn’t help them do their work.”

“Public money should be spent on practical training and getting the job done, not on this kind of nonsense.”

“It’s ridiculous and should not be happening.”

An NDA spokesperson said: “This optional session is part of our commitment to building inclusive workplaces where all our people feel supported and can thrive.”