The primary task of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) is to provide independent scrutiny of the Government’s and Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s proposal, plans and programmes to deliver geological disposal, together with robust interim storage, as the long-term<br/>management option for the UK’s higher activity wastes. In June 2007 the Scottish Executive announced a policy of near-surface, near-site long-term storage rather than geological disposal.

The UK Government and the devolved administrations_ (for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, from here on referred to as &quot;The Government&quot;) statement of October 2006 made clear there will be strong independent scrutiny of the proposals, plans and programmes to deliver geological disposal of higher activity radioactive waste.