Don't delay replacing Trident - scrap it!

Submitted by AWL on 22 September, 2010 - 12:07 Author: Sacha Ismail

Rumours and hints are circulating in the press that the government may delay replacing Britain's Trident nuclear weapons system until after the next general election in 2015.

The original plan was to begin the replacement in 2014, but the government is under pressure to stave off costs (at least £20 billion and perhaps much more) and avoid a political row just before the election.

This hesitation is despite the complete lack of a campaign from the labour movement - and certainly from the Labour leadership candidates, all of whom except Diane Abbott support Trident replacement. Ed Miliband has condemned the Tories for considering putting off the decision.

We can see why the capitalist class, with its concern for the prestige of Britain as a world power, would want to maintain a so-called nuclear deterrent. The idea that the working class has any interest in such a thing is ludicrous. Why would we want our rulers to spend billions of pounds on preserving their ability to threaten mass murder across the world?

Time for a serious labour movement campaign against nuclear weapons - and a fight to impose this policy in the Labour Party.

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