The SNP has said that the Labour party’s position on Trident has been “corrupted by a whiff of power” and that only the SNP will oppose wasteful spending on weapons of mass destruction and put Scotland’s interests first.
Labour’s Deputy Leader, Angela Rayner, and Shadow Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, confirmed their support for Sir Keir Starmer’s “triple lock” commitment to Trident despite previously voting against renewing the UK’s trident nuclear deterrent in 2016.
In a tweet posted at the time, Rayner said:
“Thanks for the tremendous support on my position over Trident, amazed we can find money for this, but we steal £30 a week off disabled people”.
David Lammy also tweeted:
“The money being spent on Trident could fund up to 850,000 new affordable homes, or 9,000 new schools. Public services must be our priority.”
Commenting, the SNP’s candidate for Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber, Brendan O’Hara said:
“Labour politicians who once held principled stances on Trident have been corrupted by a whiff of power – only the SNP will oppose wasteful spending on weapons of mass destruction and put Scotland’s interests first.
“Angela Rayner and David Lammy both rightly attacked the UK government for renewing Trident – but are now preparing to hand over a blank cheque to Sir Keir Starmer to impose austerity on the public while prioritising nuclear missiles.
“While Westminster inflicted austerity hammers household budgets across the country it is objectively wrong for the Labour party to waste billions of pounds on these weapons, especially ones stored on Scotland’s doorstep.
“We in the SNP know that a future without nuclear weapons is possible, and in this upcoming General Election people will get the chance to say no to Trident nuclear weapons, and vote SNP for a future made in Scotland, for Scotland.”
