The Harper government did an end-run around Canada's nuclear safety watchdog and adopted legislation to restart the Chalk River nuclear reactor. It was a highly unusual move that overrode the advice of the country's nuclear safety regulator. Eighty per cent of the world's nuclear medical isotopes are produced at the reactor north of Ottawa which had been shut down for weeks. Health Minister Tony Clement explained that the Conservatives pulled out all the stops to pass legislation to restart the 50-year-old reactor. (Prime Minister Stephen Harper flatly asserted there was no risk of a nuclear accident and dismissed the commission as a bunch of Liberal hacks who don't care about the health of Canadians.)

Date: 2007-12-12
Placeline: OTTAWA, Ontario.
Source: The Canadian Press
Length: 23 seconds

Transcript Prediction: << I understand that this is an unusual situation there's no question about it but one has to to balance that situation with the situation that we were facing that the reports were coming in across the country in certain provinces as supplies have become a critical and severe I can tell you that in Newfoundland and Labrador that is the case >>

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