The meltdown 9,000km away tipped public opinion from a mere opposition to nuclear power towards a total refusal to tolerate it further.

Chancellor Angela Merkel, a canny politician, was swift to act — reversing a decision made just months earlier to extend the lifespan of Germany’s 17 nuclear power plants. Her centre-right government then decided to immediately shut down eight reactors and switch off the remaining nine between 2015 and 2022.

Merkel