Parliament is about to vote on whether or not to replace Britain's weapons of mass destruction - Trident.
We urge our MPs to take a courageous step and vote no. Britain needs security designed to meet the challenges of the twenty-first centruy, not a cold war system based on a game of bluff, that makes us a target and will not meet the security challenges we face today. Many MPs will vote no, across the political parties. A new political consensus against Trident is emerging in British political life, as shown in the letter below. We now have a situation where those in favour of Trident - whilst numerous in parliament - are increasingly isolated from the views of most people across this country.
We urge all MPs to take those views into account. Repeated polls show a majority of people against replacing Trident, yet this appears to be another instance where many parliamentarians are wilfully at odds with the views of their constituents. For years now - as the Chilcot report has reminded us - the British people have largely stood for peace, but the majority of our elected representatives have opted for war. New nuclear weapons are now likely to be added to that sorry toll.
Whatever the outcome of the vote tomorrow, we will continue to work to prevent the replacement of Trident, across society and across all communities. Ultimately we will secure the disarmament of Britain's nuclear weapons and achieve a rational and modern defence policy for this country, contributing to a safer and more peaceful world.
The letter below was published in The Guardian on Saturday 16th July, reflecting the broad opposition to Trident replacement from across our society
"Parliament will vote on Monday on whether or not to replace Britain’s Trident nuclear weapons system. To vote in favour will see Britain as a nuclear armed state into the 2060s and beyond. The total lifetime cost will be up to £205bn. We urge all MPs to consider whether continued possession of these weapons of mass destruction is the best use of national resources. They meet none of our key security challenges and are themselves vulnerable to new technological threats. This government’s national security strategy has identified terrorism, climate change, pandemics and cyber warfare as the tier-one threats we face today. Not only does Trident have nothing to offer in countering those threats, it sucks vast amounts of money away from dealing with them. Expert evidence indicates that the huge submarines that carry the nuclear weapons can be rendered redundant by cyber-attack and detected and targeted via new underwater drone technology.
These weapons hail from a bygone age. Senior figures from the armed forces describe them as militarily useless. Addressing 21st-century security challenges requires a rational and practical approach, not one based on misplaced notions that having Trident makes us a great power and enables us “to punch above our weight”. Spending vast amounts on redundant technology to retain a cold war totem make us look antiquated and out of touch with the reality of the world today. We urge MPs to vote against Trident replacement.
Caroline Lucas Chair, Parliamentary CND
Diane Abbott Shadow health secretary
Leanne Wood Plaid Cymru leader
Nicola Sturgeon First minister of Scotland
Mark Serwotka PCS union general secretary
Major General Patrick Cordingley"