There have been concerns about discharges from Sellafield

Prime Minister Tony Blair is to discuss the issue of radioactive discharges from Sellafield with his Norwegian counterpart.

Kjell Magne Bondevik is travelling to London with his environment minister, Borge Brende, to ask for a moratorium on the discharge of Technetium 99 from the BNFL plant in Cumbria.

The Norwegian government claims discharges are harming marine life in the North Sea close to their shores.

Borge Brende has been a long-standing critic of the discharge of Technetium 99, and on Thursday will meet the British environment minister, Michael Meacher.

'Fishing harmed'

It is believed the issue will also be raised at Prime Ministerial level when Tony Blair meets Kjell Magne Bondevik.

The Norwegians are asking for a one year moratorium on the discharge of Technetium 99, a practice they say is harmful to their fishing industry.

They also accuse the British of dragging their feet on promises to investigate the possibility of stopping discharges while alternatives are explored.

BNFL says it is aware of ongoing dialogue between Mr Brende and Michael Meacher.