Women blockading the Atomic Weapons Establishment, Burghfield, England. Photo: Trident Ploughshares
The decisions on Trident renewal and EU membership will have transformative consequences not just for Britain, but for our region and probably the rest of the world. Some of these consequences will profoundly affect our security.
If David Cameron survives the EU referendum as Prime Minister, parliamentary insiders are speculating that he may rush Parliament into taking the so-called 'main gate' vote on Trident in July. This would authorise the government to sign contracts worth up to £41 billion and start building the "successor" nuclear submarines for Trident to be deployed beyond 2050. This price tag is double what MPs were told when they first voted on Trident replacement in 2007 as part of a double-sided motion which didn't just decide to replace Trident, but also committed to taking "further steps towards meeting the UK’s disarmament responsibilities under Article VI of the Non-Proliferation Treaty".
