ASN also hopes to improve the information and training of those involved in dealing with emergency situations. ASN has therefore produced a collection of primary response sheets entitled "Medical response to a nuclear or radiological event", intended for the medical professions. This guide is a teaching aid for the national training programme aimed at medical emergency professionals. In 2006, together with the Assistance publique – Hôpitaux de Paris, ASN organised a theoretical and practical training module and sent out teaching tools to nuclear physicians in the relevant departments in order to ensure dissemination of the information as widely as possible to the response personnel. In 2007, ASN will provide information on the protective measures they must take.

2006 was devoted to intense work by the post-accident steering committee set up by ASN in 2005. The purpose of this committee is to ensure that the initial policy elements on the subject are available in 2007. Up until now, the public authorities had focused their efforts on preparing for the emergency phase, so it is important to specify the provisions designed to resolve complex problems such as management of the health of the population, the economic consequences and rehabilitation of contaminated zones. ASN intends to organise a seminar at the end of 2007 to present and discuss the work of the committee.

In collaboration with the administrations and public institutions concerned, ASN drafted the circular of 11 January 2007 regarding exercises in 2007, ensuring that precise and factual goals can be defined sufficiently early. Defining these goals, which take account of experience feedback, should allow better preparation of the specifications and a better appreciation of how well the exercise was performed. In an emergency situation, the population must be rapidly informed of the protective measures to be taken. These measures must be simple, comprehensible and quick. During the experience feedback meetings after each exercise, ASN therefore focuses on identifying the actions or procedures that need to be improved. Finally, ASN intends to organise in 2007 an exercise to test the implementation of an emergency response organisation appropriate to radiological emergency situations that could arise outside nuclear installations.

2005 and 2006 saw extensive work done to update the legislation and regulatory texts concerning the organisation required in the event of a radiological emergency. Law 2006-686 of 13 June 2006 on Transparency and Security in the Nuclear Field, confirmed ASN's duties in an emergency. During 2006, ASN strove to harmonise its practices, improve information, regulate and progress in the management of emergency situations. A number of situations, which could be qualified as radiological emergencies, also required action on the part of ASN this year (rumoured atmospheric pollution, radiotherapy accident, gamma radiography accident, etc.).

In 2007, in the light of these events, ASN intends to make its mark as an independent authority, by looking at how to organise itself to ensure the success of its own roles and confirm its position as a key player in the national emergency organisation, through the experience it has acquired in identifying risks and managing emergency exercises. Together with the Ministry for the Interior, it will look at the various components of civil defence as applied to the nuclear field, taking account of the international context: risk prevention, population information and alert, protection of individuals, property and the environment. It will focus on preparing, implementing and evaluating measures and means.

ASN considers that it is important to maintain and pursue international relations with countries along France's borders, in order to improve exchanges liable to lead to harmonisation of the population protection provisions. In 2006, these exchanges in particular enabled cross-border harmonisation work to begin on drafting a common policy for iodine and defining an information exchange protocol between the safety authorities and the technical support organisations, in particular detailing the participants and the type and nature of the information exchanged in an emergency. ASN hopes to finalise this work in 2007. In order to make it easier to respond to any requests for assistance from foreign countries, ASN will be starting work on creating a database of national nuclear accident or radiological emergency assistance skills.

Following on from the work begun in 2006, ASN aims to finalise an order on risk management by the licensees. This order will clarify the objectives of the on-site emergency plan, taking account of acquired experience, and will transcribe into French law the reference levels recommended by the WENRA association. ASN considers that this regulatory work will further improve internal management of emergencies by the licensees.

ASN was contacted by the Minister for Health to ensure that the policy for protection of the population against iodine releases will be updated by June 2007 and it will continue the work carried out both nationally and with the neighbouring countries into harmonisation of practices. It then envisages preparing an information campaign for local players and populations on what to do in the event of a nuclear or radiological accident.