With the Liberal Democrats' first conference since they entered government looming later this week, we commissioned a poll to see how party members are feeling about Trident replacement. Not surprisingly, given that the party campaigned on scrapping 'like for like' replacement during the election campaign, not many are in favour.
The poll, conducted by YouGov, found that:
- Only 7% of Liberal Democrats want Trident to be replaced with a 'broadly comparable system'.
- 89% of Liberal Democrats want either a cheaper alternative to Trident or to give up nuclear weapons altogether.
- 80% of Liberal Democrats believe that a reassessment of the Britain’s nuclear weapons policy and all alternatives to Trident replacement should be included in the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).
John Sauven, Greenpeace UK
Such views are at odds with current coalition thinking. The government is still officially planning to introduce 'like for like' replacement at the end of the year, and Defence Secretary Liam Fox has excluded Trident from the Strategic Defence and Security Review, and plans to start spending serious money on the project from the end of the year.
All of which means that Trident is likely to become a major issue at this year's conference. The Conference Committee has accepted an emergency motion calling for the Strategic Security and Defence Review to be extended so it can include Trident. Members will vote on whether to debate the issue this coming Sunday, and discuss putting the multi-billion pound project on hold. If the debate goes ahead, leader Nick Clegg should expect a tough ride.
As Greenpeace UK Director John Sauven points out: "Today's poll sends a clear message to the Liberal Democrat leadership. At a time when public spending is being slashed, wasting billions on designing new submarines we aren't even sure we need isn’t going to go down well with the public or the party. Delay and a proper debate on the future of Britain's nuclear weapons is the only way forward".
The conference starts on Saturday - we'll keep you posted.
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Why do we bother with Trident? John Sauven writes for Comment Is Free »
