The Scottish National Party is today criticising Labour’s boycott of Tuesday’s debate on Trident renewal – saying that the party is ‘hiding from debate’ as its MPs simply can’t defend spending £100bn on weapons of mass destruction while backing £30bn of more austerity cuts. The debate in the House of Commons – called by the SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party – offers an opportunity for MPs of all parties and from all parts of the UK to oppose spending £100bn on a new generation of nuclear weapons at a time of continued austerity.
Labour’s refusal to take part in the debate on Trident comes less than one week after the party voted along with the Tories for a further £30bn of austerity cuts – and just days after it emerged that spending on Trident is set to spiral even further. Leader of Labour in Scotland, Jim Murphy, has always been a strong supporter of nuclear weapons – stating that Labour is “not a unilateralist party we’re not about to become one”
Commenting, SNP Westminster Leader and Defence spokesperson Angus Robertson, said: "This episode is a grim insight into Labour’s priorities under Jim Murphy and Ed Miliband. They’ll troop through the lobbies with the Tories to vote for £30bn more austerity cuts but refuse to take part in a debate on not spending £100 billion on a new generation of Trident nuclear weapons – which underlines that Labour cannot defend their indefensible position. It’s no wonder that Labour MPs are embarrassed by their party’s support for a new generation of weapons of mass destruction – but they should at least have the guts to try to defend their position rather than hiding from debate and hoping the people of Scotland won’t notice."
"That Scottish Labour MPs support wasting another £100bn on weapons of mass destruction while foodbank use is rocketing, and more and more children are being pushed into poverty, is simply indefensible – and with their refusal to debate it’s clear that they know it too. Tuesday’s debate will be an opportunity for MPs of all parties to oppose the moral and economic obscenity of Trident renewal – and with Labour MPs refusing to show up, it is clearer than ever that only an SNP vote will send a clear message to Westminster that the people of Scotland won’t stand for another generation of nuclear weapons dumped on the Clyde." Angus Robertson added.
