Stephen Harper says his government has consulted “independent experts” who have told him it would be safe to fire up the Chalk River nuclear plant again.

Harper also says the head of the Nuclear Safety Commission is holding up the re-start of the reactor because she’s a Liberal appointee who is deliberately trying to hold up the production of radioactive isotopes.

“Since when does the Liberal party have a right from the grave through one of its previous appointees to block the production of necessary medical products in this country?” he asked the opposition during Question Period.

“The longer this goes on, the greater will be the public health damage and the Liberal Party is standing in the way of fixing this.”

Linda Keen, the president of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, has said it is not yet safe to start up the reactor, which provides the isotopes to hospitals worldwide for use in Xrays.

AECL recently acknowledged that cooling pumps on the reactor were not connected to an emergency power source, putting the reactor out of compliance with its operating licence.

Harper’s attack on the CNSC as a partisan Liberal body drew anger and derision from the opposition benches.

It’s not the first time Harper has relied on independent experts to advise his government rather than relying on professional public servants and other government advisors.

Harper did not immediately make it clear which experts he had consulted in the matter.