Defence

July 22, 2016

Britain’s Nuclear Deterrent 

On 18 July 2016, the House of Commons voted to renew the Britain’s nuclear deterrent. 

•    It is impossible to say for certain that no extreme threats will emerge in the next 30 or 40 years to threaten our security and way of life. And it would be a gross irresponsibility to lose the ability to meet such threats by discarding the ultimate insurance against those risks in the future.

•    Once nuclear weapons have been given up it is almost impossible to get them back – and the process of creating a new deterrent may take decades. That is why the Conservative Party committed to renewing the Trident nuclear deterrent in our manifesto – in contrast to a disunited Labour Party who cannot come to a collective decision on this issue of national importance.

•    We cannot compromise on our national security. We cannot outsource the grave responsibility we shoulder for keeping our people safe. And we cannot abandon our ultimate safeguard out of misplaced idealism. That would be a reckless gamble: a gamble that would enfeeble our allies and embolden our enemies. A gamble with the safety and security of families in Britain that we must never be prepared to take.

We are doing this by:

•    Committing to maintain Britain’s continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent (CASD). We have guaranteed a continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent by committing to build four new Successor ballistic missile submarines. This will ensure the UK is always able to have one submarine at sea 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

•    Investing now in the Successor programme. We will replace the Vanguard Class of nuclear-armed submarines with a new class of four submarines, currently known as Successor. We will invest more than £600 million in the design phase, including buying essential long-lead items for the fourth submarine. This will take the total cost of the design phase to £3.9 billion.  

Key points:

•    Jeremy Corbyn wants to end Britain’s nuclear deterrent. ‘Not renewing Trident gives our country an opportunity to invest in industry, innovation and infrastructure that will rebalance our economy and transform it into a high skilled, high-tech world leading economy’. 

•    Corbyn said he would never use Trident. Asked if he would use nuclear weapons, Corbyn said: ‘No’. 

It’s clearer than ever that Labour cannot be trusted to keep our country safe – because they oppose renewing Trident and elected a leader who wants to dismantle our armed forces.

Q: How can you justify spending billions on the deterrent when the defence budget is under pressure?
Together the four new boats will cost around £31 billion, spread over 35 years. That’s around 20 pence in every £100 that the Government spends – an insurance premium worth paying.
 
Defence: Delivering for the Armed Forces
Balancing the defence budget so the Armed Forces have what they need to keep us safe

•    Meeting the NATO two per cent target for defence spending. We have balanced the defence budget and since 2012 we have met the NATO two per cent defence spending target. We have now committed to meeting this target for the rest of this decade (HM Treasury, Budget 2015, 8 July 2015).

•    Improving defence procurement so that new equipment is delivered on time and on budget. We have overhauled the organisation that buys the equipment and services the military need and will bring in private sector technical expertise so that taxpayers get the best deal (MoD, Top Level Messages, June 2014).

Delivering the latest military equipment to ensure Britain meets its defence obligations

•    Delivering the latest military equipment so that our Armed Forces are the best in the world. Over the next 10 years, we will spend £178 billion on defence equipment and equipment support (National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, 23 November 2015).

•    This means that we will be:
 - Creating two new fully equipped strike brigades with forces of up to 5,000 personnel each who will be to deploy rapidly and sustain themselves in the field.
- Increasing the size of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force by a total of 700 personnel.
- Renewing the continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent – our ultimate insurance policy.
- Investing in nine maritime patrol aircraft to protect our nuclear deterrent, hunt down hostile submarines and enhance our maritime search and rescue capabilities.
- Extending the life of our multi-role Typhoons for 10 extra years through to 2040, meaning we will be able to create two additional squadrons. 
- Accelerating the F-35 programme, by buying 42 jets by 2023.
- Investing £1.9 billion over five years in our cybersecurity

•    Increasing the equipment budget. We are delivering on our commitment to increase the equipment budget by at least one per cent in real terms and continue to meet the NATO target to spend 20 per cent of the defence budget on researching, developing and procuring new equipment (National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, 23 November 2015).

Supporting Service personnel

•    Helping Service personnel to buy their own home. Our Forces Help to Buy scheme allows personnel to borrow up to 50 per cent of their salary so they can buy their own home. Already 2,600 personnel have been able to move in to their home with 1,400 waiting to complete (Hansard, 23 February 2015, Col. 7). 

•    Improving facilities for severely injured personnel - to help them recover from their injuries. Injured soldiers now have access to the latest prosthetics and £300 million will be invested in a new world-class rehabilitation facility at Stanford Hall that will be 4 times the size of Hedley Court and improve and advance the cutting-edge treatments already available to injured troops (MoD Press Release, 10 July 2014).

•    Strengthened mental health provision across the Armed Forces to improve support. We extended support for up to six months after discharge from the military and have also integrated mental health assessments with routine medicals so if someone is suffering from problems they are detected and treated earlier (MoD, Covenant Achievements Delivered, 10 April 2013).
 
Defence: Labour’s failures

Labour left behind a catastrophic legacy in defence

•    Labour left behind a £38 billion black hole. Labour’s wasteful spending meant they left a £38 billion black hole in the defence budget which delayed the delivery of vital equipment and caused job insecurity for Service personnel (NAO, Major Projects Report 2010, 15 October 2010).

•    Labour presided over a procurement disaster and a ‘fantasy’ equipment programme. By 2010 the top 15 defence projects were £4.5 billion over budget and 339 months overdue with all defence projects estimated to be £35 billion over budget (NAO, The Major Projects Report 2009, 15 December 2009, link, p.6; Review of Acquisition, October 2009).

•    Labour delayed key procurement projects which increased costs.  In an attempt to deal with an out-of-control defence budget, Labour’s delayed the carrier project. But this decision added £1.6 billion to the total cost of the project (NAO, The Major Projects Report 2010, 15 October 2010, p7).

•    Labour didn’t see affordability in the defence budget as important. An independent review by Lord Levene concluded that that under Labour ‘finance, and the need for affordability, [were] not regarded as sufficiently important’ (Defence Reform: An independent report, 27 June 2011).

Labour let our Armed Forces down

•    Labour failed to provide sufficient equipment to our Armed Forces. Gordon Brown cut the helicopter budget by £1.4 billion in 2004 which held up the delivery of vital equipment to Afghanistan (Geoff Hoon, The Iraq Inquiry, 19 January 2010).

•    Labour neglected the welfare of the Armed Forces. Labour failed to enshrine the Military Covenant in law; children of serving personnel, forced to move location, were given little support and there was no mental health support for or tracking of veterans when they left the military (Conservative Party, Armed Forces Manifesto 2010,p.13). 

•    Labour cut the size and budget of the Armed Forces Reserve. Labour cut the size of the voluntary Reserves from 64,066 in 1997 to 39,420 in 2010 and cut the Territorial Army budget by £2.5 million in 2007-08 and 2008-09 (MoD, Reserves and Cadets Strengths, link; Hansard, 21 June 2007, Col. 1542).

•    Labour went 12 years without carrying out a proper defence review. Labour’s only defence review was conducted in 1998 – they then went 12 years without conducting a further review despite major wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (MoD, Strategic Defence Review, Jul 1998).

Labour remain in denial over the crisis they left behind in defence

•    Labour have admitted to the chaos they left behind, but in private only. Despite a secret internal Labour memo stating that the £38 billion black hole was Labour’s ‘biggest [defence] weakness’, their Shadow Defence Minister in public said that Labour needed ‘to shoot down this erroneous myth that has been put about by this Government’ (Mail on Sunday, 25 March 2012, link; Hansard, 26 June 2012, Col. 233).

•    Labour have only identified £5 billion of savings. Labour have detailed just £5 billion of cuts and savings that they would make or support in defence. This still leaves £33 billion of cuts and savings that they have failed to identify if they wish to address the £38 billion black hole they left behind in the defence budget (The Guardian, 6 January 2012).

July 7, 2016

 

Yesterday, Sir John Chilcot published his inquiry into the Iraq War.

Wednesday was a difficult day for all the families of those who lost loved ones. They have waited for this report for too long and our first thoughts must be with them. We hope they can take some comfort from knowing that we will never forget the incredible service and sacrifice of their sons, daughters, husbands and wives.

 

The UK cannot turn the clock back, but we can ensure that lessons are learnt and acted on. That is why this Government established a National Security Council (NSC) and appointed a National Security Adviser to improve decision-making, as well as ensuring that our Armed Forces always have what they need. There will be further lessons to learn from studying this report in the coming days.

 

Intervention is hard, but there are times when it is right and necessary. As with our intervention against Daesh in Iraq and Syria today, Britain must not and will not shrink from its role on the world stage or fail to protect its people.

 

April 1, 2016

 

The Prime Minister is in Washington attending the Nuclear Security Summit.

Britain’s nuclear deterrent is the ultimate insurance policy in a very difficult and dangerous world. But we know that the terrorists we face today would like to kill as many people as they possibly could, using whatever materials they can get their hands on.

The security of nuclear materials for those countries with nuclear programs is incredibly important.  That’s why this conference will make sure we have proper security for those nuclear materials, not just in Britain but all over the world.

This conference is about making sure our world is safe and secure, and we're not at risk from terrorists coming together with nuclear materials.

 

 

October 1, 2015

Britain’s Nuclear Deterrent

Issue: On 30 September 2015, Jeremy Corbyn admitted that he would never use Britain’s nuclear deterrent.

Deterrents don’t work if you’re not prepared to use them. Having nuclear weapons and our enemies knowing that we’re prepared to use them in the most extreme circumstances of self-defence is vital to keeping our country safe.

 We need our nuclear deterrent as much today as we ever did. The world has changed dramatically but the nuclear threat has not gone away. In terms of uncertainty and potential risk it has, if anything, increased. The submarines which carry Britain’s Trident nuclear warheads will need to be replaced from 2028, and we are simply not prepared to settle for something that does not do the job.

 We are committed to replacing Trident and maintaining Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent. As part of an initial assessment phase to look at designs and carry other work necessary to build the new submarines, we have invested £1.1 billion, placing major contracts with companies such as Rolls Royce and BAE Systems. We have also placed orders for certain key items and components that will take many years to deliver and which if left until later could jeopardise the delivery of the programme and undermine Britain’s deterrent.

 We remain committed to nuclear disarmament when it is done on an international basis and in a credible way. However, as long as nuclear weapons exist Britain must maintain a minimum, credible and independent nuclear deterrent, in order to safeguard our national security and the security of every family.

We are doing this by:

 Committing to maintain Britain’s continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent (CASD). We have guaranteed a continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent by committing to build four new Successor ballistic missile submarines. This will ensure the UK is always able to have one submarine at sea 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

 Investing now in the Successor programme. Since 2011, £1.1 billion has been invested in initial research, design and development work into the new Successor submarines. This includes a £328 million contract awarded to BAE Systems for design work. This has been necessary to ensure that when the final decision is taken as to whether to renew Trident we are in a position to build the new submarines.

 Renewing Trident is the best option for Britain. A review in 2013 showed that the alternative options to a continuous at sea deterrent are less capable, less credible and more expensive. It also showed that to maintain the deterrent four submarines are required, anything less and Britain would have a part-time deterrent.

 

At around only six per cent of the annual defence budget, the costs of running the UK’s nuclear deterrent are affordable and represent an investment in a capability that helps to ensure the UK’s national security.

 

 

September 28. 2015

 The Prime Minister has announced Britain will play a greater role in the UN peacekeeping operations in Somalia and South Sudan.

Our Armed Forces have a long history of delivering security and stability to some of the most difficult environments in the world, and we are proud to offer British support and expertise to peacekeeping operations in Somalia and South Sudan.

As the world agrees ambitious goals to end extreme poverty, it is absolutely vital that the international community works together to shore up stability in Africa. And Britain – with our two per cent defence budget and 0.7 per cent aid budget – is more than able to play her part.  

Our commitment to peacekeeping operations will help to alleviate serious humanitarian and security issues in Somalia and South Sudan, helping to bring stability to the region and preventing these challenges from spreading further afield.

 

 

September 12, 2015

Labour are now a serious risk to our nation’s security, our economy’s security and your family’s security.

 Whether it’s weakening our defences, raising taxes on jobs and earnings, racking up more debt and welfare or driving up the cost of living by printing money – Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party will hurt working people.

This is a very serious moment for our country – the Conservatives will continue to deliver stability, security and opportunity for working people.

 A risk to our national security

 Labour would:

·         Scrap Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent. ‘I am against the replacement of Trident and the nuclear missile system that goes with it’ (Jeremy Corbyn, Warrington Leadership Hustings, 25 July 2015).

·         All but dismantle our Armed Forces. ‘Why do have to be able to have planes, transport aircraft, aircraft carriers and everything else to get anywhere in the world? Why?’ (The Sun, 2 September 2015, link).

·         Withdraw from NATO: ‘I’d rather we weren’t in it’ (New Statesman, 29 July 2015, link).

·         Give Argentina joint control of the Falkland Islands. He has called for ‘some degree of joint administration’ of the Falkland Islands (Daily Politics, 14 January 2013). 

Labour’s leader has also:

·         Made excuses for Russian action in Ukraine. ‘Everything has an equal and opposite reaction and so the more you build up NATO forces, the more of an excuse the Russians have’ (Daily Mail, 11 August 2015, link).

·         Opposed anti-terror legislation. ‘The Counter-terrorism and Security Bill continued to make its way through parliament, against my wishes and without my support!’ (Jeremy Corbyn, 22 January 2015, link).

·         Shared platforms with known terrorists and called terrorist groups ‘friends’. ‘It will be my pleasure and my honour to host an event in parliament where our friends from Hezbollah will be speaking…I’ve also invited friends from Hamas to come and speak as well. Unfortunately the Israelis would not allow them to travel here’ (The Express, 29 June 2015, link).

 

September 1, 2015

This September will see the first anniversary of the Parliamentary debate and vote on UK support to the Iraqi Government as part of the international Coalition to counter ISIL. 

Since that debate, the UK has contributed fully to Coalition efforts to cut off ISIL finance, reduce the flow of foreign fighters, discredit the ISIL narrative and provide humanitarian aid, while our Armed Forces have made the second biggest contribution after the US in taking the fight to ISIL through precision strikes in Iraq, the gathering of vital information by UK Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft, and the provision of key support such as Voyager Air-to-Air refuelling planes. 

RAF Tornado and Reaper aircraft have flown over 1100 missions and the UK is providing around 30% of the Coalition’s ISR capability.  Our forces have trained over 1800 Iraqi Security Force personnel.  Overall we have around 800 personnel deployed in the region, with 150 in Iraq and more flowing out over the summer as part of our increase of specialist trainers.