A BHP Billiton mine in South Australia. Photograph: AFP
Can there really be a "moral imperative" that Britain pursues a new generation of nuclear power stations? These words were used by E.ON, the German utility which has become a large player in the gas and electricity supply business in Britain by taking over Powergen.
Whatever the advantages may be in providing very large amounts of electricity from a relatively few number of atomic plants that generate less carbon emissions, it strikes me as dangerous language to use.
Not least because a decision to leave my children's, children's, children's children a whole load of highly toxic waste does not strike me as a clear cut "moral" case, and secondly, because I am always queasy when big business talks about ethics.
We all know who led the way when it came to talking about the "noble cause" of capitalism: John Browne, the chief executive of BP. And look what happened to him - bundled out of the door after telling big ones to a high court judge.
Companies are set up with the task of making a good rate of return for their shareholders and nothing else. One would hope business leaders would realise that in today's more open world they need to keep happy a wider group of stakeholders, including governments, suppliers and their own staff.
And if executives are going to wear their allegiance to corporate social responsibility on their sleeves - as most do these days - then it has got to be backed up by concrete action and not just used as soft marketing.
Companies such as BHP Billiton, which would probably supply E.ON with uranium for any nuclear plants it wants to build, is increasingly mining in more remote parts of the developing world.
They are often dealing with countries which often have relatively weak political structures which can easily be exploited by large multinationals away from the prying eyes of the better-funded and Western-based non-governmental organisations.
Rio Tinto has trumpeted the "model" mining project that it has been developing in Madagascar. It has the support of the World Bank but the WWF and Friends of the Earth have recently raised all sorts of questions about the real benefits to local people of that particular scheme.
No, being told by big mining or power companies that there is a moral imperative to pursue a course of action that they hope to make millions of pounds out of is a pretty toxic line of argument.
