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Trident missiles are reliable and nuclear weapons can be fired if needed, government says | UK News

The UK’s nuclear deterrent “remains effective, dependable and formidable” – despite a Trident missile misfiring during a recent test and crashing into the ocean in Florida, the government has said.

In a statement, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps confirmed “an anomaly did occur” when a rare operation was held on HMS Vanguard on 30 January – but stressed this was “event specific”.

“Nor are there any implications for our ability to fire our nuclear weapons, should the circumstances arise in which we need to do so,” Mr Shapps said.

Undated handout photo issued by the Ministry of Defence of a still image taken from video of the missile firing from HMS Vigilant, which fired an unarmed Trident II (D5) ballistic missile. Boris Johnson is set to raise the cap on Britain's stockpile of Trident nuclear warheads ending three decades of gradual disarmament, it has been reported. Issue date: Tuesday March 16, 2021.
Image:
An unarmed Trident II (D5) ballistic missile firing from HMS Vigilant at an unknown date. Pic: PA

His statement added: “The Trident missile system remains the most reliable weapons system in the world, having successfully completed more than 190 tests.”

Mr Shapps said the government had “absolute confidence” in the UK’s nuclear deterrent – and that there were “no implications for the reliability of the wider Trident missile systems and stockpiles”.

He went on to warn: “The UK’s resolve and capability to use its nuclear weapons, should we ever need to do so, remains beyond doubt.”

The fault had something to do with it being a test-firing, with a source saying that the launch would have been successful had it been carried out for real with a nuclear warhead.

The Sun newspaper first revealed the drama, saying Mr Shapps had been onboard the submerged submarine at the time.

Malfunction sends wrong kind of message

Deborah Hayes

Deborah Haynes

Security and Defence Editor

@haynesdeborah

The UK’s nuclear deterrent submarines have one core mission – to maintain a continuous ability to launch a strike at any moment upon the order of the prime minister, without failure.

Any suggestion of vulnerability with one of the boats, the Trident missiles or their nuclear warheads undermines the protective blanket that this multiple-times-of-multiple-billions-of-pounds insurance policy is meant to provide to the UK and its NATO allies.

It is why confirmation of an “anomaly” in the test-firing of a US-made Trident II missile by a Vanguard-class submarine off the coast of Florida is more than just an embarrassing blow.

Read Deborah’s full analysis here.

It is the second Trident missile failure in a row for the Royal Navy‘s ageing nuclear weapons fleet after a problem with another test-firing in 2016, when a missile flew in the wrong direction.

The UK has four nuclear-armed submarines. The country’s nuclear deterrent requires at least one of them to be continuously at sea to deter nuclear threats from enemies such as Russia and to be ready to respond should the worst happen and the UK or its allies face a nuclear attack.

Mr Shapps said a routine “Demonstration and Shakedown Operation” had been held, which is when a ballistic missile submarine completes scheduled deep maintenance.

A series of weapons and sub-system tests are performed to assess the submarine and crew – and this culminates in the firing of an unarmed Trident II D5 missile.

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‘Complete confidence’ in Trident

While details surrounding submarine operations are not normally disclosed, Mr Shapps said his statement was in recognition “of the level of interest” in what happened, all while protecting national security.

He added that there was continued investment in the next generation of ballistic submarines, extending the lifespan of Trident missiles and replacing warheads.

“Sustaining the deterrent and renewing it for the future is a truly national endeavour,” Mr Shapps said – describing it as “the ultimate security insurance policy”.

Secretary of State for Defence Grant Shapps looks on as he gives a speech at Lancaster House
Image:
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps. Pic: Reuters

On 30 January, first-stage boosters did not ignite and the 60-tonne missile – fitted with dummy warheads – splashed into the Atlantic Ocean and sank.

A source told The Sun: “It left the submarine but it just went plop, right next to them.”

A search was immediately initiated to recover the highly sensitive munition.

HMS Vanguard, which has just completed a £500m overhaul, was undergoing a final round of tests before it returns to nuclear patrols.

Government backs Sizewell C after reports nuclear power plant could be scrapped | Politics News

The government says it still supports the Sizewell C nuclear power plant and is hoping to get a deal over the line to fully fund the project as soon as possible.

Funding towards the Suffolk plant totalling £700m was signed off by Boris Johnson at the start of September in one of his last acts as prime minister.

But the site’s future was cast into doubt overnight after reports claimed it was being reviewed ahead of the chancellor’s autumn statement in just under two weeks – with Treasury sources telling Sky News “all options are on the table” to fill the fiscal black hole in government finances.

Now, Rishi Sunak’s official spokesperson says the reports are “not accurate” and “our position remains the same”, adding negotiations are “ongoing and constructive”.

The £20bn Sizewell C project aims to generate enough low-carbon electricity to supply six million homes and help protect the UK from energy market volatility.

The plant is a joint endeavour with French energy giant EDF and is expected to take a decade to build.

While it has the backing of the Labour Party and unions, critics say the plans are too expensive and the new power source will take too long to come online.

Sizewell C nuclear power plant given green light with £700m of government funding | Politics News

Boris Johnson has given the green light to the Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk, promising £700m of government funding for the project.

He confirmed the move during a speech from the site in one of his final acts as prime minister – and amid the rising cost of living crisis – saying he was “absolutely confident it will get over the line” in the next few weeks.

The government has previously said the £20bn power plant would take just under a decade to build and could power six million homes.

Mr Johnson is due to be replaced as prime minister next week when either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss is announced as his successor.

Politics live: Boris Johnson makes £700m promise as time in office draws to a close

In his speech, the PM praised the history of nuclear discoveries in the UK, but asked “what happened to us?” – claiming British nuclear energy was in “paralysis”.

He decried the “short termism” that he said led to no new nuclear power plants being built in the UK in nearly 30 years, while the likes of France had built four in the same timeframe.

And he criticised past leaders of both Labour and the Liberal Democrats – though not mentioning his own party’s time in office – saying it had been “a chronic case of politicians not being able to see beyond the political cycle” and choosing to invest.

Mr Johnson said his government’s British energy security strategy was “rectifying the chronic mistakes of the past and taking the long term decisions that it needs”, adding: “We need to pull our national finger out and get on with Sizewell C.

“This project will create tens of thousands of jobs, it will also power six million homes – that is roughly a fifth of all the homes in the UK – so it’ll help to fix the energy needs, not just of this generation but of the next.”

Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported that by taking a stake in Sizewell C, the government would give confidence to investors about the country’s commitment to new nuclear power stations.

The newspaper also said French state-owned EDF, the project developer, is set to take stake too as part of efforts to remove a Chinese state-backed nuclear energy company from the project.

But campaign group Stop Sizewell said the power station was a “vanity project” for the PM that his successor should “consign to the bin”.

They added: “When every penny matters, it’s totally wrong to shackle the next prime minister and billions in taxpayers’ money to this damaging project, whose ballooning cost, lengthy construction, failure-prone technology and long term water supply are so uncertain.”

Mr Johnson said there was “no cultural aversion to nuclear power” in the UK, and the campaign group – who protested outside the site ahead of his speech – we an example of “pure nimbyism”.

He added: “A baby born this year will be getting energy from Sizewell C long after she retires and this new reactor is just a part of our Great British nuclear campaign.”

Cost of living crisis: Liz Truss considers ‘nuclear option’ of cutting VAT to 15% | UK News

Liz Truss is considering a “nuclear” option that could see VAT cut from 20% to 15%, according to reports.

A source told Sky News that Ms Truss “will consider options to help people but it would not be right for her to announce her plans before she has been elected prime minister or seen all the facts”.

Estimates suggest such a VAT cut would save the average household more than £1,300 a year, while the Institute for Fiscal Studies said it would cost taxpayers £3.2bn a month, or £38bn for a year.

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How will energy prices hit households?

Mr Sunak’s team criticised the plan as expensive and “incredibly regressive”.

A source close to Ms Truss’s discussions told The Sunday Telegraph: “They [the Treasury] have talked about the Gordon Brown approach that he took at the time (of the financial crisis), when it looked as though consumer confidence was falling.

“They are talking about the last big economic shock that hit the whole economy and consumers in 2008, and the Treasury’s response to that.”

And another claimed she “doesn’t have time” to offer targeted support, warning: “People are going to start going out of business from the minute she takes office.”

Mr Brown announced a year-long cut in VAT from 17.5% to 15% in December 2008 in response to the financial crisis.

Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have been under growing pressure to say how they will help the millions of Britons struggling with record energy prices and inflation.

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‘My spending approach is the right one’

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Other possibilities being considered by Ms Truss include extending the 5p cut in fuel duty beyond March, and resuming help for businesses that was seen during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as a larger reduction in VAT for hospitality, tourism and agriculture.

Sacha Lord, Greater Manchester’s night-time economy adviser, said on Saturday: “There is no energy price cap for hospitality. An untenable situation.

“Without intervention, we will sadly see closures like never before in our lifetime. It’s criminal.”

He retweeted a post from the owners of the Rose and Crown pub in Merseyside, which said it had received a quote of £61,000 for its electricity bill.

The Sunday Times said Ms Truss’s team is also considering lifting the personal tax-free allowance, raising the point at which people pay the 40% rate of tax, and cutting the basic tax rate below 20%.

An insider told the newspaper that if Ms Truss decided against immediate tax cuts, they could be incorporated into a longer-term review of the tax system, which she is expected to announce alongside a fiscal package.

Mr Sunak wrote in The Times on Saturday that help with energy bills should be directed at low-income households and pensioners, delivered through the welfare system, winter fuel and cold weather payments.

He also acknowledged that providing “meaningful support” would be a multibillion-pound undertaking”.

A Treasury spokesperson said the department is making the “necessary preparations” to ensure the next government has options to deliver extra help “as quickly as possible”.

Meanwhile, in his final days as PM, Boris Johnson said that the UK’s future “will be golden”, despite some “very tough” months ahead.

Writing in The Mail On Sunday, he blamed Vladimir Putin for the worsening crisis, saying: “It was Putin’s invasion of Ukraine that spooked the energy markets. It is Putin’s war that is costing British consumers.

“That is why your energy bill is doubling. I am afraid Putin knows it. He likes it. And he wants us to buckle.”

Last week, energy regulator Ofgem announced that the price cap would rise by 80% from October, meaning a typical default tariff customer will pay £3,549 a year.

The latest predictions from energy consultancy Cornwall Insight are that the price cap will breach £6,600 in April.

It prompted calls for more government help directed at the most vulnerable, but Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi said that even those on higher salaries could struggle in the months ahead.

He says Britons on £45,000 may also need support to pay their energy bills.