TRIDENT OPTIONS REPORT FUNDAMENTALLY FLAWED
The UK Government’s report on the options for replacing the Trident nuclear weapons system is fundamentally flawed, according to Glasgow MSP Patrick Harvie.
The alternatives the report considers, including using spacecraft and stealth bombers rather than submarines, are underpinned by a desire to inflict “significant damage” on “potential aggressors”.
A report by Scottish CND earlier this year revealed that an attack using 40 nuclear warheads, the normal complement on a Clyde-based submarine, would result in 5.4 million deaths, and that humanitarian and emergency agencies would be unable to provide an adequate response.
Patrick Harvie said:
“This report is fundamentally flawed. Its premise is that threatening mass murder with nuclear weapons is necessary and desirable, so the option of doing away with Trident isn’t even considered. These weapons of mass destruction, imposed on Scotland, do not make us safer and should have no part in our future.
“The Tories and Lib Dems are engaged in a meaningless argument about whether to have four killer submarines or three, while Labour are failing to provide any real opposition. It’s bizarre to point out that Trident was designed for a Cold War mentality, but in the next breath to propose remaining 75% committed to that same Cold War thinking.
“The Scottish Parliament, which more fairly represents the views of Scots, has clearly rejected this morally repugnant system. The real threats facing human security in the 21st century are related to issues like energy, food, climate change and global injutice, and we should be looking to set an example as a peaceful nation that promotes global humanitarian interests.”