What Sir Keir Starmer has said about Labour's nuclear deterrent policy - and what it means for Scotland

Labour have unveiled plans for a Trident “triple lock” as Sir Keir Starmer reaffirmed his party’s commitment to the nuclear deterrent.

The Labour leader vowed to be the "party of national security" as he spoke in Greater Manchester on Monday, where he was joined by 14 candidates who were previously in the military.

Sir Keir also repeated his ambition to increase defence spending to 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) – a target Rishi Sunak has also said he wants to meet by 2030. But what did the Labour leader say about Trident, and what does it mean for Scotland?

Sir Keir Starmer has made a Labour commitment around building four new nuclear submarines. Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Trident

The Labour leader made the commitment to build four new submarines, and also guaranteed all the future upgrades needed for the submarines to patrol the waters under a “triple lock”.

He said: “This Labour Party is totally committed to the security of our nation, to our armed forces – and, importantly, to our nuclear deterrent. Just a few weeks ago I visited BAE Systems in Barrow-in-Furness. I was the first Labour leader to visit in 30 years.

"I saw the nuclear submarines being made. I saw an industry that supports the local community and I met workers who are proud to be doing their bit for our national security.

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer and shadow defence secretary John Healey at the Fusilier Museum in Bury in Greater Manchester.

"They deserve our full support and they will get it. The nuclear deterrent is the foundation of any plan to keep Britain safe – it is essential.

"That’s why Labour has announced a new triple-lock commitment to our nuclear deterrent. We’ll maintain Britain’s Continuous at Sea deterrent 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

"[We will] deliver all the needed future upgrades and we will build four new nuclear submarines like the ones I saw in Barrow. That won’t just keep us safe, it will also support good jobs and growth across the UK.”

What does it mean for Scotland?

The commitment to maintain the Trident nuclear programme ensures the Clyde Naval Base is protected and would also ensure upgrades for the facility’s submarines.

Labour has previously stressed its commitment to the nuclear deterrent in key communities in the nuclear supply chain, such as Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber, home to HMNB Clyde. This will also include Plymouth Moor View, home to the Devonport shipyard; Filton and Bradley Stoke, home of Abbey Wood; Derby North and South, and home to Rolls-Royce’s Raynesway site.

However, the SNP called the plans “morally abhorrent, but financially reckless”.

SNP candidate for West Dunbartonshire Martin Docherty-Hughes said: “Nuclear weapons have no place in Scotland, and only a vote for the SNP in July will protect Scotland’s interest against the Labour and Tories – neither of whom will do what the people in Scotland want and scrap Trident nuclear weapons for good.

“In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, it is objectively wrong that Keir Starmer would funnel billions of pound of public money into keeping weapons of mass destruction on our doorstep in Scotland, while families are still living in poverty after 14 years of Tory austerity, and our budget from the UK government keeps getting slashed."