Soaring cost of Trident exposed

This year alone Trident cost £95million to maintain – with that annual total set to increase by £66million, or 70 per cent, by 2014.

SNP Defence spokesman Angus Robertson, who obtained the costs in a parliamentary answer said:

"The soaring cost of maintaining the ageing Trident is frankly obscene, and in the current economic climate it must be obvious that these resources could be better spent.

"These rocketing costs should be a wake-up call to Ministers, and in my view maintenance costs should become decommissioning costs.

"Indeed, this money should be spent helping households and high streets keep their heads above water, not maintaining Trident, and certainly not replacing it.

"To build a "son of Trident" would be an act of immense irresponsibility by Gordon Brown.

"Instead of building new nuclear systems to sit in the Clyde the UK should take the lead in calling for an end to nuclear weapons by bringing an end to this shameful waste of resources."

Note:

The text of Angus Robertson’s Question is detailed below:

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate

he has made of the maintenance cost of Trident submarines in (a) 2008-09

and (b) each of the next five years.

Mr. Quentin Davies: The estimated maintenance costs of Vanguard class

submarines in 2008-09 and each of the next five years, which cover fleet

maintenance and capital spend incurred as part of the long overhaul period

(refuel) (LOP-R) maintenance programme, are:

  Total (£ million)

2008-09 95

2009-10 134

2010-11 152

2011-12 123

2012-13 105

2013-14 161