London Singing Group Open Letter

Dear Reader,

May we appeal to you to consider the implications of the Trident nuclear base in Faslane?

What is Trident for? Britain currently deploys four Trident nuclear submarines at this base, each equipped with up to 16 US missiles, each one capable of carrying 14 independently targetable warheads made in Aldermaston. Each warhead can deliver nearly 4 times the destructive power of the bomb that obliterated Hiroshima.

The effects of a nuclear bomb on its victims are well known: they include bleeding from every orifice from the initial pressure wave; death from burns and as a result of fluid loss from the body in skin blisters; people caught in the blast will begin to suffer from vomiting, hair loss, skin rashes, intense and unquenchable thirst. Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of people would die in just one blast. And the impact of a nuclear blast can be long-lasting, causing radiation sickness and then mutations in future generations.

These are Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs), which almost everyone everywhere, including politicians, have agreed should be eliminated to secure peace in our increasingly fragile world. The catastrophic devastation that would be caused by the use of any of these weapons should not be part of any decent society’s foreign or defence policies: why is it ours? Yet the government seems keen to replace the present submarines with still more destructive weapons which would last until 2050.

Nuclear weapons do not give us security, indeed they make us more vulnerable. It is clear that the major security threat to the UK is terrorism.  Even Tony Blair admitted last year in the House of Commons, “I do not think that anyone pretends that the independent nuclear deterrent is a defence against terrorism.” (Actually this ‘independent’ deterrent is wholly dependent on the US).   There is no convincing rationale for keeping nuclear weapons.  The problems of the world need to be solved through equality, understanding and diplomacy, not the use of weapons. Much of UK foreign policy is more likely to encourage terrorism, and the presence of Trident missiles in Faslane makes it an obvious and logical target. 

Proliferation. The very existence of nuclear weapons is a threat to the stability of the world. As long as we continue to keep and develop bigger and bigger weapons, more and more countries, like North Korea, will want them and the world will become ever more unstable. The UK has signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and should be negotiating to get rid of them. The risks to the world, by accident or aggression, are increased by bringing more nuclear weapons into it, and the prospect of a peaceful world recedes ever further.

Local employment. We realise that at present many people in this area work at the base, or benefit in some way from it economically. But patterns of employment change constantly, and the UK Government should not encourage your support for WMDs by suggesting that your families’ livelihoods are at stake. Alternative non-destructive work could exist here as it does elsewhere: the once-great docklands of Liverpool, London and Tyneside have seen regeneration no-one could have dreamed of. In the long term change would be for the better, avoiding over-reliance on this one employer and the very considerable risks to safety already mentioned.

The cost. As yet the government’s intentions are unclear. They may simply replace the submarines. In addition they may order new warheads and new weapons systems. Whatever, replacement of Trident would cost £billions and be a catastrophic waste of money and resources. The costs of any replacement could provide for many more nurses and hospitals, many thousands of teachers, save millions of lives in Africa and other impoverished countries and help tackle global warming

If, like us, you believe that Trident and other nuclear weapons are a danger to you, your family, your community and your world, tell your politicians. Write to your SMP: Edinburgh EH99 1SP, your MP: London SW1A 0AA and your MEP: rue Wiertz 1047 Brussels.

With good wishes,
Women and men from Brent, North London, November 2006