UCU: Peace and disarmament

Motion

Motion text: Congress is alarmed that the Government pushed for a Parliamentary vote on the replacement of the Trident nuclear weapons system without the promised full public debate and without a green paper including non-replacement as an option.
We oppose the strategy of dependence on nuclear weapons to give status to nations and consider that any replacement of Trident would violate Britain's responsibilities under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, leading other states to do likewise.
We call on the British government to renounce nuclear weapons and any British involvement in the US missile defence programme, which would enable the US to attack other countries without fear of retaliation.
The billions saved from cancelling Trident replacement should be used to enhance pensions, health and education, to protect our manufacturing industry by requiring and encouraging defence contractors to diversify, to alleviate global poverty and tackle the problem of global climate change.