§ 16. Mr. Gwilym Robertsasked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the estimated costs of Polaris production and maintenance in the next four years; and what is the purpose of this weapon.
§ Mr. HealeyAbout £200 million; the purpose of these weapons was stated in my answer to the hon. Member for Bebington (Mr. Brooks) on 10th August.—[Vol. 733, col. 357.]
§ Mr. RobertsIs the Minister aware that to spend vast sums of money in this way, building unusable weapons to fight imaginary enemies, while at the same time relying on charity for many social purposes like cancer research, is quite incompatible with the form of society which we on this side of the House are out to build?
§ Mr. HealeyI would simply say to my hon. Friend that the value of any form of society depends on one's ability to protect it from destruction in war. In so far as this programme contributes to that end, it is well justified.
§ Mr. MartenIn view of the antimissile missile, would not the value of the TSR2 have been far greater than that of the Polaris submarine in the full time?
§ Mr. HealeyI have met nobody holding this view who has held responsibility and known the facts on either side of the House.