Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

Outer Space is the Next Frontier for War - Dave Webb (CND UK)

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Published on Saturday, 07 March 2020 11:20

CND UK chair Dave Webb has written for the Morning Star about the alarming developments in space weapons technology. 

The article is copied below but you can also read on the Morning Star website here.

It may have been lost among all the fuss about impeachment, but on December 20 President Donald Trump signed the US National Defence Authorisation Act for 2020, rubber-stamping a record defence budget of $738 billion.

The US/UK Warhead Deal

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Published on Tuesday, 03 March 2020 14:00

As first seen on http://www.nuclearban.scot/, the website for Scottish ICAN partners.

It is important to note that the missiles on the UK nuclear weapon submarines are not British but are leased from the US. Indeed the UK does not have the facility to remove the missiles from its four Vanguard-class boats - that needs to be done at King's Bay in Georgia. The delivery and targeting software is US made. The Trident warheads - the actual nuclear bombs - have been manufactured and assembled at the Aldermaston/Burghfield complex in Berkshire but the design is American, although the evidence suggests that some design elements have depended on collaboration between the US and the UK nuclear weapon engineers. Not a sniff of "taking back control" on this one. The UK describes its Trident system as an "independent nuclear deterrent". The description is false.

Write to SEPA to oppose radioactive waste disposal from HMNB Clyde

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Published on Wednesday, 19 February 2020 15:30

We would like to invite our members and supporters to submit their comments of disapproval to the SEPA consultation on MOD’s application regarding the disposal of radioactive waste from Her Majesty’s Naval Base (HMNB) Clyde.

The Nuclear Support Hub (NSH) which the MoD is building at Faslane is intended to centralise the existing radioactive waste handling facilities. It is situated in a new location within the Faslane site, with a new discharge point into the middle of the Gare Loch. The number of nuclear submarines at Faslane is scheduled to increase and radioactive discharges are, in fact, expected to increase some by very large amounts. MoD is seeking approval to transfer submarine and weapon related solid and contaminated liquid waste from Coulport to Faslane

We strongly object to these increased radioactive discharges which, if permitted by SEPA, would result in increased radioactive contamination of the entire Gare Loch, including its flora and fauna and would result in increased radiation doses to people living in the vicinity of the Loch.

Scottish CND see no good reason why the MOD should be given preferential treatment and be exempt from the provisions already in place for all the other employers. The MoD’s application involves expected increases in discharges of Tritium by as much as 30 times and discharges of Cobalt 60 by almost 50 times.

Scottish Government's Approach to Civil Nuclear Power

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Published on Wednesday, 12 February 2020 12:09

The following content is from a letter sent to Paul Wheelhouse MSP as the Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands and cc'd to Office of Nuclear Regulation, Scottish Environmental Protection Agency, North Ayrshire Council, East Ayrshire Council and East Lothian Council from Scottish CND, UN House Scotland and Friends of the Earth Scotland.

Response to First 'Low-Yield' Trident Warhead

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Published on Sunday, 02 February 2020 14:42

Last week, The Guardian and other media published that the United States has deployed its first low-yield Trident nuclear warhead on a submarine that is currently patrolling the Atlantic Ocean. Donald Trump commissioned the W76-2 warhead two years ago which has an explosive yield of five kilotons, a third of the power of the "Little Boy" bomb dropped on Hiroshima. 

Scottish CND Executive member and lifelong peace activist Brian Quail penned a letter in response:

100 Seconds to Midnight

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Published on Thursday, 23 January 2020 16:41

Doomsday Clock Registers Increased Planetary Peril

Today the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved its symbolic Doomsday Clock twenty seconds closer to midnight in recognition of the significantly increasing risks of nuclear war and climate catastrophe.

In its statement, the Bulletin says that any belief that the threat of nuclear war has been vanquished is a mirage and that civilisation-ending nuclear war - whether started by design, blunder, or simple miscommunication - is a genuine possibility. Their assessment is based on the Iranian and North Korean developments as well as on the almost total breakdown in arms control measures applying to the nuclear armed states.

Reflecting the urgency of the situation a timely Scottish Parliament motion(1) by Bill Kidd MSP has called for real progress towards genuine nuclear disarmament, citing tomorrow, 24th January, as the anniversary of the very first UN resolution which was a call for the elimination of nuclear weapons. The quinquennial Review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) takes place in New York in April/May. This is the first Review since the adoption by the UN of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons which complements the NPT and provides the legal mechanism for the fulfilment of the hitherto disregarded pillar of that treaty - the obligation on the nuclear-armed states to take real steps in good faith towards complete disarmament. Scottish campaigners are urging their parliamentarians to attend the Review in a civil society capacity since otherwise Scotland's rejection of nuclear weapons will not be represented.

Chair of Scottish CND Lynn Jamieson said: "We appreciate the stark realism of the Bulletin's assessment of the horrifying risk we face every single day and hope that this will lead to real and immediate action. We need an immediate step back from the brink by the nuclear-armed states and those seeking to acquire these weapons. Above all we need to begin the journey towards the total elimination of these weapons via the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons."

NPT and the TPNW discussions at the UN May 2020

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Published on Wednesday, 22 January 2020 15:50

NPT and the TPNW discussions at the UN May 2020. This year, our Scottish Parliamentarians have a unique opportunity to join diplomats and governments to advocate for nuclear disarmament, not just from Scotland but for the world. Can you help make that happen? Here’s the background and why it's important.

This year, the Treaty on The Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) gets closer to ‘entry into force’, that is the point at which it will become binding on those who join. For that to happen we only need 16 of the states who have already signed to complete ratification by putting it through their national legislation. All Greens, SNP and a good number of Scottish Labour Parliamentarians have signed a pledge to support the TPNW. The unique opportunity for our parliamentarians will arise because the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is due for Review in New York in early May  [1].

Write to your MP or MSP now

Campaigners Raise Alarm Over Inclusion in Counter-Terrorism Net; Reassurance Sought From Police Scotland

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Published on Tuesday, 21 January 2020 13:26

Responding to the recent revelation that police forces in England have included peaceful campaigns such as Greenpeace, Extinction Rebellion and CND in their lists of organisations to be alert to in countering terrorism, Scottish CND is seeking re-assurance from Police Scotland that no such tactics are being used in Scotland.

In her letter to Chief Constable Ian Livingstone Scottish CND Chair Lynn Jamieson says: “We are writing to share our concern over reports that peaceful and legitimate campaign groups, such as Greenpeace and CND, have been included in training manuals and other advice by officers in English police forces engaged in counter–terrorism. Entangling the policing of peaceful protest with counter-terrorism activity is the thin edge of a very dangerous wedge and a step towards a situation in which all activity critical of the state is deemed illegal. We seek your assurance that Police Scotland is not and will not be engaging in such unacceptable categorisations. As regards protest in Scotland against the UK's nuclear weapon system we are used to the almost universal acceptance by Scottish police of the legitimacy of our activity and its entirely non-violent nature. This has built a reputation that no-one wishes to lose.”

Doomsday Clock to be Reset Next Week

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Published on Wednesday, 15 January 2020 13:46

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists' Doomsday Clock symbolised how close we are to total catastrophe due to human-generated existential threats. It is currently set at only two minutes to midnight. When reset on Thursday 23rd January at 3:00pm GMT it is predicted to be closer still because of the continued climate emergency and risk of nuclear war. Both are heightened by new threats to democracy across the world. 

Scottish CND chair Lynn Jamieson said:

"The planet is in crisis; climate emergency demands total focus but we dare not ignore the nuclear threat. Displacement and conflicts are caused by climate breakdown and raise the probability of wars including nuclear catastrophe. Maintaining a nuclear threat is carbon intensive and heightens the climate emergency. 

Both threats require genuine co-operation across the globe. In the case of nuclear weapons, we have a potentially effective mechanism already in place and backed by a majority of the world's states - the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The complete elimination of nuclear weapons is both essential and achievable. 

The recent surge in awareness of climate breakdown has shown how quickly public engagement can change. The same shift must happen in addressing the threat of nuclear catastrophe, especially since the two disaster scenarios are so closely inter-linked."

Scottish CND will issue a statement following next week's reset of the Doomsday Clock.

Contact: Lynn Jamieson: 07974 631397