Labour commitment to fire Trident is sheer madness

_{Labour’s shadow Defence Secretary Nia Griffith  asserts Jeremy Corbyn “has had his own views on a number of issues” including opposing Trident (“Ignore Jeremy, Labour is OK with firing nukes”, 25 April) while  proclaiming she would be prepared to use the Trident nuclear WMD system.}

_{As a fellow Welsh person, Labour supporter, and opponent of nuclear weapons, I am ashamed at her utter hypocrisy and political opportunism. She also has had her other views.}

_{On July 18th last year she voted against renewing Trident, after a Parliamentary debate.} (_{https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2016-07-18/debates/16071818000001/UKSNuclearDeterrent?highlight=Nuclear%20weapons#contribution-16071821000096)}

_{Before that, she voluntarily signed a pledge circulated by the International Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) which included the statement}

_{“Any use of these ultimate weapons of mass destruction – whether by accident, miscalculation or design – would have catastrophic consequences for humanity and the planet as a whole. The only way to guarantee that they will never be used again is to outlaw and eliminate them without further delay.”}

_{Now she claims she would launch Trident. Sheer madness, as she previously thought.}

_{Parliamentary Debate on Trident Renewal 18}^th _{July 2016}

_{Parliament voted in favour of building the Successor nuclear powered submarines that will carry the Trident nuclear missiles from the early 2013s onwards, when the current Vanguard submarines will come to the end of their lives.}

_{Welsh MPs voted as follows:}

Against building Successor submarines to carry the Trident nuclear weapons	Did not vote	In favour of building Successor submarines to carry the Trident nuclear weapons
Ann Clwyd	Christopher Elmore	Guto Bebb
Jonathan Edwards	Chris Evans	Kevin Brennan
Paul Flynn		Chris Bryant
Nia Griffith

 

 

_{ICAN – the International Campaign Against Nuclear weapons}

_{ICAN is a global campaign coalition working to mobilize people in all countries to inspire, persuade and pressure their governments to initiate negotiations for a treaty banning nuclear weapons.}

_{C N D Cymru supports ICAN, in particular by trying to persuade as many elected Welsh politicians as possible to sign ICAN’s}

 

_{Global Parliamentary Appeal}

_{for a Nuclear Weapons Ban}

_{We, the undersigned parliamentarians, conscious of our duty to protect and promote the safety and well-being of the people we represent, express our deep concern at the continuing threat posed by many thousands of nuclear weapons across the globe. Any use of these ultimate weapons of mass destruction – whether by accident, miscalculation or design – would have catastrophic consequences for humanity and the planet as a whole.} 

_{The only way to guarantee that they will never be used again is to outlaw and eliminate them without further delay. We call upon all national governments to negotiate a treaty banning nuclear weapons and leading to their complete eradication. A global ban on nuclear weapons is a humanitarian imperative of the highest order. It is necessary, feasible and increasingly urgent.}

_{Welsh politicians who have already signed this appeal:}

Welsh Assembly Members	Members of Parliament	Members of the European Parliament
Mick Antoniw AM	Ann Clwyd MP	Jill Evans MEP
David Elis-Thomas AM	Jonathan Edwards MP	Derek Vaughan MEP
John Griffiths AM	Paul Flynn MP
Llyr Huws Gruffydd AM	Nia Griffith MP
Mike Hedges AM	Liz Saville-Roberts MP
Bethan Jenkins AM	Jo Stevens MP
Dai Lloyd AM	Mark Williams MP
Julie Morgan AM
Adam Price AM
Jenny Rathbone AM
David Rees AM
Simon Thomas AM
Joyce Watson AM
Leanne Wood AM