A new poll of Labour’s parliamentary candidates has revealed that 75 per cent would vote against Trident replacement. The vote on Trident replacement is due in 2016.
The poll, carried out by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), also reveals that less than a fifth of Labour’s candidates (18 per cent) would vote in favour of replacing the UK’s nuclear weapons system, while seven per cent remain undecided.
The results, taken from a representative sample of candidates, show that many safe Labour seats are set to be won by anti-Trident figures. Many of those surveyed have provided statements on their opposition to Trident replacement which are available here.
Ahead of the general election, CND has been surveying the views on Trident replacement of all Prospective Parliamentary Candidates (PPCs) from major parties. All submissions received are added to a searchable database.
CND’s General Secretary Kate Hudson said: "These results show that Labour candidates are far more in-step with public opinion on this issue than the party’s leadership. The majority of the British public agree that squandering £100 billion on nuclear weapons at a time of deep austerity cuts and NHS crisis would be both morally reprehensible and economically disastrous – and it’s high time the Labour leadership caught up.
"Trident will be a key issue at this election, with MPs elected in May set to vote on its replacement in 2016. With many anti-Trident candidates across the major parties – including three-quarters of Labour candidates polled: Trident replacement is far from inevitable. The electorate now has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to ensure that the next Parliament is one that will truly represent public opinion and scrap Trident once and for all."
* Searchable database of candidates' views on Trident here: http://act.cnduk.org/lobby/feedback
* CND http://www.cnduk.org/
* More on the issues in the 2015 General Election from Ekklesia: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/generalelection2015
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