Jeremy Corbyn has said he would “never” use Britain’s nuclear deterrent, even in the event of a nuclear atttack in an interview with the Today programme.
All British Prime Ministers give sealed instructions to the captains of the Trident submarines, as whether they should strike back against a nuclear strike or not. But Corbyn’s public showing of his hand means that, effectively, Britain would cease to have a deterrent the moment Corbyn walked into Downing Street.
The announcement comes just days after constituency and trade union delegates voted through measures to retain Trident – but Corbyn’s statement effectively leaves Labour committed to paying for a deterrent that will never be used.
UPDATE
Maria Eagle, the Shadow Defense Secretary, has repotedly termed Corbyn’s comments “not helpful”:
Maria Eagle, shadow defence sec on never using nukes – ‘I don’t think a potential PM answering a Q like that in the way he did is helpful’
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) September 30, 2015
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