HIGHLAND Council's emergency planning officer yesterday told councillors of his genuine suspicion that the UK's security services were behind Dounreay's persistent failure to inform the civil authorities of movements of nuclear material through the Highlands.

Mr Brian Downie was speaking at a meeting of the council's protective services committee in Inverness, which was also addressed by senior management of Dounreay on current issues facing the plant.

When asked for his contribution, Mr Downie said: ''One area I would like to touch on is the movement of radioactive material into and from the Dounreay site. At this point in time, this council's emergency planning office is not notified of any of these movements.

''I can put this into context. When nuclear warships anchor on our west coast, warships which carry a number of missiles with warheads, we are notified. We are told the date and the time they will arrive, how long they will be staying, the date and the time that they depart. If there is a change in these timings by as much as two hours, we are notified of these changes.

''It is not being paranoid, it is simple common sense and operational procedure. I am not going to line the route with local authority workers, firemen or policemen, it is a question of being two steps ahead. However remote the possibility of an accident, the fact that you are these two steps ahead improves your chances of reacting efficiently, speedily in being able to protect the public which is my prime function.''

Mr Downie continued: ''The regulations which cover the movement of nuclear material are produced by the International Atomic Energy Authority who are based in Switzerland. Nowhere in those regulations does it say 'thou shalt not tell.'

''My personal view, and it is only a personal view because I can't back it up with fact, is that senior management at Dounreay would be quite happy to pass on that information but they are stopped from doing so by somebody, or some organisation, much higher up the chain, which suggests a large input from the security service.''

Dounreay's director Dr Nelson was present and he said in response: ''Certainly I will take that issue up with our security people, I do however know that the local police are told about all the movements.''

Dounreay's fiercest critic Mrs Lorraine Mann, said afterwards: ''The emergency planning officer's comments were extremely pertinent, but yet the Highland councillors have never seen fit to criticise Dounreay for the lack of this information but that is the disdain with which Dounreay treats Highland Council.''

Council convener Peter Peacock, meanwhile reported yesterday that the Government's watchdog the Radioactive Waste Management Committee is coming north, in July, and is seeking to consult the council on Dounreay's openness and its relationship with the public.

Before that, Dounreay managers will run two high-profile open days over the weekend June 21 and 22 for the public.