§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the "small working group" under the Ministry of Defence's Chief Scientific Adviser which is to "examine the safety of United Kingdom nuclear weapons" (Minister of State for Defence Procurement, Commons Hansard, 15th October 1991, col. 172) is to study the safety of all nuclear weapons in the United Kingdom (i.e., including those belonging to other governments) or only those in the possession of Her Majesty's Government; and if the latter is the case, why are other nuclear weapons on United Kingdom soil and in United Kingdom waters excluded from the safety examination.
§ The Earl of ArranThe group was established to review, in the light of any relevant aspects of the Drell panel in the United States, the safety of the present and prospective UK nuclear armoury.
As part of its review, the group will obviously be studying the Drell Report on the safety of US nuclear weapons. However, we remain satisfied with the assurances provided by the US on the safety of US nuclear weapons that may be present in this country.