13 September 2006: for immediate release
STOP PRESS: TUC overwhelmingly adopts position against Trident replacement, calling on the government to accomplish the total elimination of its nuclear arsenal.
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament welcomed today’s vote at the Trades Union Congress conference opposing a replacement for Trident, Britain’s nuclear weapons system.
The text of the resolution from the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers reads in part (1): “Congress believes that Britain’s nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction, capable of killing millions of people and are tied into US military and foreign policy and that far from deterring nuclear threats, replacing Trident may increase the risk of nuclear conflict.”
The motion calls on the government not to replace Trident, and was passed by an overwhelming majority.
Tony Woodley, General Secretary of the Transport and General Workers’ Union, said, “Replacing Trident would be a scandalous waste of money as well as a dangerous escalation of nuclear armaments at a time when we should be looking to disarm.”
Bob Crow, General Secretary of RMT, said, “I want to see no nuclear weapons in any country, and the best way to make that happen is to not replace Trident in this country.”
Kate Hudson, Chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said, “Today’s vote at the TUC is a victory for the good sense of the British people – and a strengthening of the TUC’s longstanding support for government policy based on peace and respect for international law. This new TUC position is fully in line with the majority of British public opinion, 59% of whom oppose Trident replacement, according to a recent poll (2). The task now is to get the government to listen to the people.”
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Notes to Editor:
1. For the full text of the RMT motion, visit http://www.tuc.org.uk/congress/tuc-12294-f0.pdf The Trident motion is item 65, which appears on page 37 of the document.
2. The ICM poll of 27 July 2006, commissioned by CND, shows that 59% of the British public opposes Trident replacement. For a full copy of the poll, please contact Rick Wayman, CND’s Press & Communications Officer, on 0207 7002350 or 07968 420859
3. For further information and interviews please contact Rick Wayman, CND’s Press & Communications Officer, on 0207 7002350 or 07968 420859
4. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is one of Europe’s biggest single-issue