Operation Trident
- 21 Jun 06, 10:06 PM
It's one of those evenings when there's a large gap between the words a politician uses and their real meaning and significance.
Tonight Gordon Brown committed himself to retaining Britain's independent nuclear deterrent in the long term. No surprise there you might think - until you focus on the fact that Britain's Trident missiles and the submarines that carry them will have to be replaced or updated at a cost of many billions of pounds - some say 10, others as much as 25.
And until you focus on the fact that the decision - I'm told - must be made in a matter of months and not years. Gordon Brown wants anti-nuclear campaigners to know that - despite official insistence that no decision has been taken - he is just as committed to replacing Trident as Tony Blair. This will disappoint some who were counting on a change of prime minister leading to a change in Britain's foreign and defence policy.
It will please Tony Blair who's demanded Gordon Brown's backing on the tough policy choices before he's ready to leave Number Ten.
