Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Trident: Renewal Cost

Monday 20 May 2024 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Owen Thompson asked about the cost of Trident renewal, citing an estimate of 21 billion.
  • The Secretary of State responded that the defence of the realm takes precedence over other issues.
  • Julian Lewis noted that the SNP stands alone in its stance on scrapping the nuclear deterrent.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Owen Thompson SNP
Defence Economy
Context

The MP inquired about the financial implications of renewing Trident, citing concerns over its high costs relative to social welfare needs.

Question

What recent estimate has been made of the cost to the public purse of Trident renewal. According to the House of Commons Library briefing, Trident renewal is expected to cost £21 billion in 2022-23 prices while one in three children lives in poverty.

Answer from Grant Shapps

I was recently at Faslane in Scotland, and I can tell the right hon. Gentleman that that is not what the people employed in the defence sector think about Trident. In my view, every other issue that we face comes after the defence of this realm.

Not addressed: The cost estimate and its impact on social welfare were avoided

How: Changed Subject To Personal Opinions And Workforce Support

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Q2 Owen Thompson SNP
NHS Defence
Context

The MP followed up by questioning the Secretary of State about whether Trident's high costs, estimated at £21 billion, should be reconsidered in light of social welfare needs.

Question

That was an interesting answer from the Secretary of State. The Government and the loyal Opposition have both pledged to commit to Trident renewal, investing obscene amounts of money that would be better used to improve our NHS, to help households with the cost of living and to support personnel or, indeed, veterans. When will the Secretary of State agree that Trident renewal is an obscene waste of money, which could be put to much better uses?

Answer from Grant Shapps

I was recently at Faslane in Scotland, and I can tell the right hon. Gentleman that that is not what the people employed in the defence sector think about Trident. In my view, every other issue that we face comes after the defence of this realm.

Not addressed: The cost estimate and its impact on social welfare were avoided

How: Changed Subject To Personal Opinions And Workforce Support

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Q3 Julian Lewis Con New Forest East
Defence
Context

The MP referenced a historical statement by Denis Healey about the importance of defence expenditure for national security and asked if this view still holds true.

Question

Although the right hon. Member for Midlothian (Owen Thompson) is a valued member of the Intelligence and Security Committee, I think the Secretary of State would agree that the SNP is very much on its own on the idea of scrapping the nuclear deterrent. I am put in mind of a quotation from the late Denis Healey, who said that “once we cut defence expenditure to the extent where our security is imperilled, we have no houses, we have no hospitals, we have no schools. We have a heap of cinders.”—[Official Report, 5 March 1969; Vol. 779, c. 551.] Is that endorsement of deterrence not as true today as it was when he gave it 55 years ago?

Answer from Grant Shapps

Absolutely right.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific context and application of Healey's statement were not elaborated upon, only agreeing verbally without further details.

How: Brief Verbal Agreement

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