OP handwaves away issue of nuclear safety, incorrectly labelling it a straw man, and with it, the very real possibility of nuclear accidents. If there was a Chernobyl-scale nuclear accident in Germany, it would drastically shorten the lives of tens of millions of people, and it would make half the country uninhabitable. But all this is academic, because nuclear power can not economically compete with renewables.
> Nuclear is probably the most expensive energy source for powering a grid at present
No, not probably and not at present. Since the first experimental reactor went online, nuclear power has always been the most expensive way to generate electricity.