A GOVERNMENT adviser on the disposal of redundant nuclear submarines has resigned in protest after the sacking of a colleague.

Peter Lanyon said he felt "dirty" and "angry" after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) refused to listen to opposing views on the Submarine Decommissioning Project.

Mr Lanyon, representing non-governmental organisations on the project's steering and advisory groups, stood down after the sacking of two other advisers, Jane Hunt and Bill Thompson, academic specialists in public consultation at Lancaster University's Centre for the Study of Environmental Change.

The MoD said expertise on the panel had been "duplicated".

Another member, Ian Avent, of the Plymouth-based Campaign Against Nuclear Storage and Radiation, said: "It is getting to the point where I can't stomach it any more.

"Personally, it leaves me hanging by a thread. Every bit of me wants to say 'Stick it, I don't want to part of it' but there is a little voice saying that it is better to be part of the process and know some information rather than be outside and know nothing."

Britain currently has a fleet of 27 nuclear submarines. Eight disused vessels are being stored afloat at Devonport ahead of being dismantled, while seven are at Rosyth, in Scotland.

The Submarine Decommissioning Project will help to decide where and how the nuclear-powered submarines are disposed of and where contaminated material is stored.

Dr Hunt was sacked from the advisory group of the Submarine Dismantling Project and has now also resigned from its steering group.

In her resignation letter, Dr Hunt wrote: "It seems my own advice is uncomfortable for the MoD and therefore ignored and seen as trouble-making rather than what it is: a genuine attempt to improve the governance of the project through fair and honest consultation and open and transparent decision-making.

"Given that the MoD is reneging on previous commitments taken in response to consultation, is failing to properly elicit and consider expert advice and is adopting a 'decide, announce, defend' approach, I do not feel I can continue as a member of the steering group, as my membership implicitly condones the actions for the MoD."

A spokesman for the MoD said that a "detailed review" of the membership of the advisory group "clearly showed duplication in the area of communications and community consultation".

He added: "As an MoD-funded body, it would be inappropriate to use taxpayers' money to fund members whose expertise is duplicated elsewhere."