B.
contries since the 1960's. They also make provision for lower
limits to apply to operators of small nuclear installations, and to
dispense with the need for insurance certificates with respect to
the purely domestic carriage of nuclear matter.
8. It is proposed to make amendments to the 1965 Act in order to
raise the limits of liability and to give effect in the United
Kingdom to the Paris and Brussels Protocols which have been agreed
in substance, but not yet signed. The government wishes to be in
a position to ratify the Protocols as soon as possible after they have
been signed and, therefore, wishes to put United Kingdom law in line
with the revised Conventions. Some of the amendments proposed depend
upon the signing of the Protocols, while others do not. It will,
therefore, be necessary for the amendments to be brought into force
on different dates.
9. The opportunity is also being taken to make certain other
amendments to the 1965 Act which are not connected with changes to
the Paris and Brussels Conventions. The amendments required and
the reasons therefor are described below.
Limits on Liability of Operators
10.
Article 7(b) of the Paris Convention provides that the maximum liability of an operator of a nuclear installation in respect of damage caused by a nuclear incident shall be 15 million European Monetary Agreement units of Account (units of account). (The terms "nuclear incident", "nuclear installation" and "operator" are defined in Article 1(a) (i), (ii) and (vi) respectively of the Convention).
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