The UK government published a National Security Strategy (‘A Strong Britain in an Age of Uncertainty’) and a Strategic Defence and Security Review in 2010.
At the time, CND responded by questioning how the vast spending on Trident can be justified when the threats it is designed to combat had been officially classified as falling outside the top rank of security concerns faced by the UK.
The current Conservative government is now working on the 2015 National Security Strategy (NSS) and Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) and they want your input (click here for the form).
CND encourages you to remind the government that nuclear weapons do not keep us safe and that in fact, the opposite is true. Feel free to submit the following template or draft your own:
The government’s National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review should include detailed consideration of the role nuclear weapons play in meeting Britain’s security needs.
• Nuclear weapons do not meet current security needs. Resources should be invested in addressing significant contemporary threats, such as terrorism and cyber warfare. A third of the MoD’s procurement budget should not be spent on a strategically useless weapon when the armed forces – and other government departments – face severe budgetary cuts
• Possessing nuclear weapons means we live with the possibility of detonation, accidental or otherwise, risking the lives of millions.
• Our insistence on possession increases the danger of proliferation as well as escalating international disputes.
Ending our nuclear weapons possession will contribute to our security by:
• Deterring nuclear proliferation and de-escalating current global and regional tensions
• Releasing significant financial resources to meet a range of public spending priorities, including meeting new security challenges
• Strengthening the international disarmament and non-proliferation regime
A decision by our government not to replace Trident, together with promotion of multilateral initiatives and compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, can help reshape the global security context and ensure a future free from the threat of nuclear annihilation.
The deadline for submissions is Friday, September 18th. Contact information@cnduk.org / 020 7700 2393 with any questions
