THE UK Labour Party would keep nuclear weapons and support Nato if elected, John Healey, the Shadow Defence Secretary, has said, continuing to put it at odds with the Scottish Labour Party on the issue of Trident renewal. In a speech to the Royal United Services Institute [RUSI] think-tank, Mr Healey made clear that retention of Britain’s nuclear deterrent was “non-negotiable” and Labour’s support for the Western alliance of Nato was “unshakeable”. Both have been long-standing Labour policies in successive UK party election manifestos but were sometimes at odds with former leader Jeremy Corbyn and his supporters. In 2015, Scottish Labour backed a conference motion opposing Trident renewal, which is still the party’s official policy north of the border. A Scottish Labour Party spokesman told The Herald: “There is no change in our position.” As Scottish Labour’s new leader is named on Saturday, it is believed the frontrunner, Anas Sarwar, who personally was in favour of Trident renewal when he challenged Mr Leonard for the leadership in 2017, does not intend to reopen the issue in the run-up to the Holyrood election in May.
Herald 26th Feb 2021 read more »
Daily Mail 26th Feb 2021 read more »