The UK government has announced a landmark £14.2 billion investment to build the Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk, in a move hailed as the start of a “golden age” for the country’s nuclear industry. The funding, confirmed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the GMB Congress on June 10, 2025, is part of the upcoming Spending Review and marks the most ambitious expansion of the UK’s nuclear capacity in decades.
At the peak of construction, the Sizewell C project will create 10,000 jobs, including 1,500 apprenticeships, with thousands more roles expected across British supply chains. Already, £330 million in contracts have been awarded to local firms, with 70% of future contracts anticipated to go to UK-based suppliers, boosting jobs in sectors like construction, welding, and hospitality.
Sizewell C will deliver clean, homegrown energy to six million homes, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and enhance national energy security. As part of a broader clean energy strategy, the government is also backing Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and investing £2.5 billion in fusion energy research over five years.
“This is the biggest nuclear building programme in a generation,” said Chancellor Reeves. “It will create thousands of well-paid jobs and secure a future of clean energy and economic growth.”
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband echoed the sentiment, calling it a “mission to invest in lower bills and good jobs” and a necessary step to “take back control of our energy.”
The Sizewell C announcement forms a key pillar of a multi-pronged strategy that includes over £6 billion to modernise the UK’s submarine industrial base and £4 billion for civil and defence nuclear infrastructure. Additional funding will support redevelopment projects at key defence sites including HMNB Clyde and Sheffield Forgemasters.
Joint-Managing Directors of Sizewell C, Julia Pyke and Nigel Cann, called it “a new chapter” for UK energy, while union leaders hailed the plan as essential for hitting net zero targets and reviving British industry.
