What price our country's safety?

Turning a blind eye to serious and genuine concerns when there's a fast buck to be made - or spending to be avoided - is a well-honed Tory skill.

They apparently love free markets to distraction - except of course when their true-blue DNA comes out and they ramp up the class war by wheezes such as selling off social housing at discount, market-distorting prices.

When it comes to commercial takeovers it's open market season, and unlike a raft of other countries such as the US and many European states there are no laws here to put boundaries on foreign investment.

We're all used to hearing foreign companies being associated with our essential public services - such as Germany's RWT and Eon and France's EDF.

But as the Tories dodge and duck and put telescopes to their "blind" eyes there are some serious questions which need to be answered about foreign investment in our most essential services.

It's not a question of xenophobia.

It's about to what extent foreign companies are really bothered about our domestic concerns or our household bills, and what possible ramifications are there if and when our utilities aren't British any more.

One respected economic commentator, Alex Brummer, wrote recently: "Roughly half of all our essential services - from water to bridges and ports - now have overseas owners. And in many cases, there's disturbing evidence to suggest the public is losing out and will continue to do so."

The Tories are doing somersaults right now over Chinese companies competing for the Horizon nuclear project and are seeking to limit their stakes if they're successful.

They're citing apparent concerns about Beijing gaining control of one of Britain's biggest nuclear reactor programmes, which plans to build reactors at Wylfa in Anglesey and Oldbury in Gloucestershire.

Chinese nuclear companies will be competing with other groups to bid for ownership of the project which has been put up for sale by its joint German owners Eon and RWE.

Predictably Mark Pritchard, a Conservative MP and member of the parliamentary joint national security committee, came out with the Tory-obvious: "Using a communist-backed, state-owned Chinese company will create major security concerns."

So the free market which has reigned so far can be arbitrarily tinkered with, after all, if the Tories don't like the cut of a company's jib.

Britain is one of the few Western countries pursuing new nuclear projects.

However, leaving aside the country involved, should we be worried about one particular country holding large stakes in our utilities network, or one particular service? Or the vast majority being non-British?

CND general secretary Kate Hudson is in no doubt over nuclear power.

She told me: "We are opposed to all new nuclear power development irrespective of which country the company or cash originates in - whether UK, Europe, China or wherever.

"Post-Fukushima, many countries have had the good sense to withdraw from the whole nuclear power process, opting instead for the development of sustainable energies, cleaner processes and energy efficiencies.

"That our government still remains wedded to nuclear is more than regrettable.

"Britain already wrestles with an unsolvable nuclear waste problem with all the attendant health and environmental risks.

"To continue to pursue this energy form when it is absolutely unnecessary given the alternatives that exist is irresponsible in the extreme.

"Those countries continuing to develop nuclear power need to seriously readdress their strategic energy and investment priorities."