Trident PM calls snap vote on new nuclear subs

MPs will vote on renewing Britain’s Trident nuclear weapons system next week.

David Cameron, speaking at the Nato summit in Warsaw, announced that a parliamentary vote on replacing the full fleet of four submarines will take place a week tomorrow.

Cameron, who is standing down as leader in September, said the vote was needed to put the renewal of Trident “beyond doubt”.

The Tories, with an overall majority in the Commons, are set to win the vote, which is likely to inflame tensions within Labour.

Leader Jeremy Corbyn is opposed to nuclear weapons but party policy is pro-Trident.

The Commons vote could prove a further blow to his authority in the party if his backbenchers support the renewal programme.

Cameron said the vote would confirm support for the replacement of the full fleet of four submarines.

He said: “The nuclear deterrent remains essential, in my view, not just to Britain’s security but, as our allies have acknowledged here today, the overall security of the Nato alliance.

“While Britain may be leaving the EU, we are not withdrawing from the world. Nor are we turning our back on Europe or European security.”

The SNP, the third-biggest party at Westminster, will oppose the renewal of Trident in the vote. The UK’s nuclear deterrent is based at Faslane on the firth of Clyde.

SNP MSP Bill Kidd said: “David Cameron has confirmed our worst fears – that the Tories are set to press ahead with an early vote on a new generation of Trident nuclear weapons.

“With the potential cost of renewing Trident skyrocketing to over £200billion, this would be a wasteful and reckless spend on a useless weapons programme which is opposed by the majority of parliamentarians in Scotland.

“The Tory Prime Minister has learnt the hard way over recent weeks that big decisions can have severe consequences.

“He’s still got time to think again to save billions being wasted on the obscenity of new nuclear weapons on the Clyde.”