- Labour leader said he wanted to add ‘realism’ to nuclear non-proliferation treaty
- He called for discussions about ‘every country’s nuclear weapons’ including UK
- The upcoming election is ‘an opportunity to get rid of Trident,’ Ian Blackford said
- Nationalist also want a referendum on independence in order to form a coalition
- Jeremy Corbyn is a long-term opponent of UK’s nuclear weapons programme
By DAVID WILCOCK, WHITEHALL CORRESPONDENT FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 09:58 GMT, 17 November 2019 | UPDATED: 16:16 GMT, 17 November 2019
Jeremy Corbyn today suggested he would be prepared to give up the UK’s nuclear weapons after the SNP signalled it would be part of their price for propping up his future government.
The Labour leader said he wanted to add ‘realism’ to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NNPT), with discussions about ‘every country’s nuclear weapons’.
He also had a dig at Nato, disagreeing with a claim last week by General Sir Nick Carter, the professional head of the British Army, that the alliance was the most successful in history.
His BBC interview came after the Scottish National Party’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford had said the upcoming election was ‘an opportunity to get rid of Trident’ – the UK’s atomic missile system.
Asked about the claim on the Andrew Marr show, Mr Corbyn said: ‘I think the SNP would actually agree with me – in the past they certainly have – that the priority has to be giving realism to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, giving realism to the six party talks in Korea, giving realism to the whole question of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in the Middle East or anywhere else.’
Pressed further about nuclear weapons he added: ‘If you enter into nuclear non-proliferation treaty discussions then clearly every country’s nuclear weapons go into that equation.
The Labour leader (pictured right greeting Ian Blackford this morning) said he wanted to add ‘realism’ to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NNPT), with discussions about ‘every country’s nuclear weapons’.
Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet (HMS Vigilant pictured) is based on the River Clyde in Scotland
‘And I do think we have to recognise that, as I said, the real problems in the world are not what was happening during the Cold War, but actually the levels of insecurity brought about by climate disaster and many other things.
‘That’s where the real insecurity comes from. And threats to us at the moment are actually cyber-security more than anything else. Look what happened to our NHS two years ago.’
Former Labour MP Mike Gapes tweeted: ‘Once again Corbyn fails to support Nato.
‘He is not fit to be Prime Minister.’
The SNP have already suggested it will demand a referendum on independence as the price of support for Labour if there is a hung Parliament in December.
But Mr Blackford, asked whether dismantling the deterrent would also be a condition, said it was an £185billion ‘waste of resources’, adding: ‘Trident does not play a part in our future defence needs.’
He told the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme: ‘Here is an opportunity to get rid of Trident, to make sure we invest in conventional defence and that we take account of the security challenges that we face, to modernise our defence forces.
Mr Corbyn also had a dig at Nato, disagreeing with a claim last week by General Sir Nick Carter, the professional head of the British Army, that the alliance was the most successful in history
But Mr Blackford, asked whether dismantling the deterrent would also be a condition, said: ‘Trident does not play a part in our future defence needs
‘Trident doesn’t play a part in that.’
The SNP has made removing Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet – based on the Clyde – out of Scotland a mainstay of its party policy.
And Mr Corbyn, a former chairman of the Stop the War Coalition, has long opposed Britain’s nuclear weapons programme.
The proposal would be likely to cause a huge row within Labour as more moderate MPs support the nuclear weapons programme – which was started by the postwar Labour government of Clement Attlee.
Mr Blackford reinforced his demand for a referendum in the first year of a Labour government.
But Mr Corbyn, who appeared later on the same programme, said: ‘I cannot give him that commitment.’
He added: ‘There are Scottish elections in 2021, I think up until then certainly (not).’
