Today, UK Defence Secretary Philip Hammond is at the Faslane nuclear base in Scotland to announce another contract (worth £350m) for BAE Systems, part of the £3bn of projects that will be spent on development and initial manufacture on the current like-for-like replacement before the final decision is taken on renewal in 2016.
UK Nuclear Weapons Policy and Diplomacy
Labour Party defence in the debate on Trident
This week the Labour Party conference continues in Manchester. Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy spoke this morning with a focus on defence spending and support for service personnel. However, the future of Britain’s nuclear arsenal hit the headlines in this year’s conference season, with last week’s headlines reporting comments from recent Defence Minister Nick Harvey about the government’s review on Trident alternatives at the Liberal Democrats conference.
Country Report: United Kingdom
The United Kingdom is a member of the NPT as a nuclear weapon state. The country faces the decision on the renewal of its Trident nuclear weapon system in 2016. BASIC monitors the progress on this decision and other news relevant to the UK nuclear weapons policy in its Getting to Zero update. Read the summaries below in reverse chronological order.
Trident In Question
Debate around the decision facing Britain on the renewal of its Trident nuclear weapon system continues after Financial Times published an Op-Ed by Sir Menzies Campbell, Lib Dem foreign policy grandee and co-chair of the BASIC Trident Commission. The decision to begin the process by engaging in concept studies, and later design was confirmed by Parliament in March 2007. Parliament was assured by ministers at the time that this was not a final decision to build the submarines.
Evidence submitted by the Conservative Way Forward
APRIL 2012
1. Should the UK remain a nuclear weapon state?
Yes. The first responsibility of government is the security of its citizens. The United Kingdom’s nuclear deterrent guards against the most dangerous threat which British citizens could face. The UK’s nuclear deterrent is the last line of defence against a nuclear attack. It provides a deterrent effect which no other military capability could match. The Trident nuclear deterrent system is the UK’s ultimate insurance policy…
Evidence submitted by the Nuclear Information Service
JANUARY 2012
NIS welcomes the invitation from the BASIC Trident Commission to submit evidence addressing the questions which the Commission is considering. Our evidence addresses all three of the initial questions asked by the Commission, and focuses on the following points in particular:
• NATO's contribution to the UK's security and the role that the UK can most effectively play in NATO.
• Risks the UK faces in remaining a nuclear-weapon state, and in particular safety issues associated with the Ministry of Defence's nuclear programme.
Evidence submitted by Nuclear Free Local Authorities
DECEMBER 2011