Trident discussion

By John Madeley, author and licensed lay minister in Caversham

‘Our government is proposing to spend billions of pounds on powerful weapons of mass destruction. From the viewpoint of Christian moral theology - but also for good financial, military, legal and pragmatic reasons - I believe this must be opposed’, the Bishop of Reading, the Rt Rev Stephen Cottrell, told a packed meeting at Reading’s Abbey Baptist Church recently.

‘Replacement of Trident Missiles: vital to our security or a shocking waste of £?’ was organised by the Oxford Diocese World Development Group.

Bishop Stephen said: ‘The destruction that even one of our warheads would bring would be so devastating that we too would feel its terrible consequence in the economic and environmental damage that would follow.’

And he questioned whether reducing the number of warheads  while increasing the capability was in line with our commitments under the 1970 non-proliferation treaty. 

Chair of the debate, Owen Jewiss of St Barnabas Caversham, began by referring to the recent Defence White Paper and the government’s view that replacing Trident is necessary in case we face a nuclear enemy in the future.

Rob Wilson, Conservative MP for Reading East, said he was not persuaded that replacing Trident is the best way forward.

He questioned: ‘Would a rogue state have the capacity to attack the UK? I doubt it at present. But in 2025? Would the UK having nuclear weapons deter? Maybe.’

And he said that morally, if not technically, replacing Trident would breach our international treaty obligations, such as the Non Proliferation Treaty and the Test Ban treaty.

He asked: ‘Should not the money be used to save lives rather than destroy lives? We could do a lot with £30 billion that would be needed to replace Trident.’

Mr Wilson wondered if it would be better to extend the present Trident missile system by 10 years.

Extreme poverty and climate change are the real threats to our security today, said another speaker, Clare Palmer, of St Anne’s Caversham.