PRESS RELEASE

CND launches Alternative White Paper on Trident

21 November 2006: for immediate release

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament today launched an Alternative White Paper on Trident Replacement at a press conference in Westminster. Six MPs spoke in favour of the initiative at the press conference, with supporting statements from an additional four.

MPs launching the Paper included Jon Trickett MP, Elfyn Llwyd MP, Katy Clark MP, Gavin Strang MP, Ann Cryer MP, and Jeremy Corbyn MP. Statements of support came from John Barrett MP, Michael Meacher MP, John McDonnell MP and Jon Cruddas MP, who were unable to attend.

Jon Trickett MP, Chair of the Compass group of MPs, said: ‘This latest CND document on the proposed Trident White paper reinforces my view - and that of much of the Parliamentary Labour Party - that any renewal of Trident would call into question our legal obligations under the NPT and our moral responsibility to promote international stability. It is time for our government to hold transparent, meaningful talks on the full scope of their plans. It is also imperative that all who fear a new arms race and the strategic folly of spending vast amounts of taxpayer’s money on a deterrent that belongs to a bygone era make their opposition to such a course of action crystal clear.’

Michael Meacher MP said: ‘If greater security is the defining factor, then the UK absolutely should not replace Trident.  It answers no threats that we currently face and in fact creates more. I am proud to endorse the Alternative White Paper, seeking a safer Britain and a safer world.’

Elfyn Llwyd MP said: ‘I think we are sleepwalking into the next phase of nuclear warfare. In an age when we have no funds for drugs for Alzheimer’s patients, when we have wholesale closures of small hospitals, when we have constituents of mine coming in having suffered 2 ½ years of excruciating pain waiting for a hip operation, we are going to spend upwards of £75 billion on this awful weapon of mass destruction. If a visitor from outer space came and saw this, I’m sure they’d think we’re absolutely barking mad.’

Gavin Strang MP said: ‘Any decision to replace Trident would be particularly unpopular in Scotland and will be deeply demoralising for Labour Party supporters in particular. There’s no doubt in my view that if we develop another modern generation of nuclear weapons to replace Trident, we’ll be in breach of the NPT. What a situation to find ourselves in. For a Labour government to actually breach the non-proliferation treaty totally undermines our position as a force against nuclear proliferation in the world.’

Katy Clark MP said: ‘Over many, many years Scottish people have made clear that they don’t want weapons of mass destruction in their country. I believe that that view has got to have a voice in a decision on whether Trident is replaced. One of the biggest threats facing us is climate change. The £76 billion that we’re told it would cost to replace Trident would be better spent on developing the technology to defeat that very serious threat.’

Jeremy Corbyn MP said: ‘It is more than regrettable that the government didn’t produce a Green Paper which set out the options for a serious debate. It’s regrettable that the Labour Party conference didn’t discuss Trident replacement or Trident in any way. The CND Alternative White Paper sets out a basis for debate. We need to consider the morality of a weapon of mass destruction that could indiscriminately kill millions of civilians. Is that what we really want in the 21st century?’

John Barrett MP said: ‘Trident is a relic of the cold war, designed to deter a threat that no longer exists. Our moral authority to prevent Iran, North Korea and others from pursuing their own nuclear weapons programmes would be fatally undermined if we opt now to replace our own nuclear deterrent.’

John McDonnell MP, chair of the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs, said: ‘The CND Alternative White Paper is the definitive argument on why the Government should not waste billions of pounds on these ineffective weapons, which fulfil no role in creating a peaceful world. Trident replacement is opposed by the TUC, thousands of Labour Party members and MPs, and by an increasing majority of the British public.’

Ann Cryer MP said: ‘This is a time when we must be talking about nuclear disarmament. If we don’t do it now we’re just going to be lost completely.’

In support of a full debate on the issue, Jon Cruddas MP said: ‘I am yet to be convinced that Trident replacement is in Britain's national interest. It is time to have a full and meaningful discussion within the Parliamentary Labour Party, Parliament and around the country, so that we make the right decision after the fullest possible debate.’

Kate Hudson, Chair of CND, said: ‘In addition to the majority of the public being opposed to Trident replacement, the TUC recently overwhelmingly voted to oppose it, and numerous faith communities have come out making formal statements opposing Trident replacement. We believe that this opposition is growing. The least the government can do is provide a full and open debate putting all the options on the table in this new security context.’

The alternative White Paper is available for download from http://www.cnduk.org/pages/altwhitepaper.pdf

end

Notes to Editor:

1. According to a July 2006 ICM poll, 59% of the British public opposes a replacement of Trident when presented with a cost of at least £25 billion. Click here for a full copy of the poll.

2. For further information and interviews please contact Rick Wayman, CND's Press & Communications Officer, on 0207 7002350 or 07968 420859

3. Key points highlighted in the Alternative White Paper include:
* The inability of nuclear weapons to meet today’s major security threat, terrorism
* The absence of current nuclear superpower threats
* The promotion of nuclear proliferation: ‘The more that those states that already have [nuclear weapons] increase their arsenals, or insist that such weapons are essential to their national security, the more other states feel that they too must have them for their security.’ – Kofi Annan, 31 January 2006
* Britain’s treaty obligation under the NPT to accomplish the total elimination of its nuclear arsenal
* The cost of Trident replacement: up to £76 billion would adversely affect public spending on health care and other important issues

4. An ICM poll from June 2006 showed that 81% of the British public believes that any decision on Trident replacement should be made by Parliament, not the Prime Minister alone. Click here for a full copy of the poll.

5. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is one of Europe’s biggest single-issue peace campaigns, with over 32,000 members in the UK. CND campaigns for the abolition of all nuclear weapons everywhere. www.cnduk.org

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