§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 16 June,Official Report, column 3, if he will give a breakdown of the annual operating cost of Trident; and if he will estimate future capital expenditure on the project. [4759]
§ Dr. ReidIt is too early in the life of the Trident programme accurately to assess operating costs but we estimate them to be in the order of £200 million per annum over a 30 year in-service life. This estimate encompasses manpower and related costs, refits of the submarines, stores and transport costs, a share of the running costs of shore facilities, an element of the costs of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, in-service support of the submarines and their weapon systems and decommissioning and disposal costs. Estimated future capital expenditure on the project is as stated by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Defence in his answer of 16 June,Official Report, column 3.
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the operational purpose of the Trident nuclear missile system. [4416]
§ Dr. ReidI refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 16 June 1997 to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Dr. Jones),Official Report, column 81.
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§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the cost of keeping the Trident fleet(a) on 24 hour patrol and (b) on stand by. [4757]
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the ordering of a fifth Trident submarine. [4417]
§ Mr. SpellarWe have no such plans.
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the report from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament concerning the costs of Trident, a copy of which has been sent to him; and if he will make a statement. [5025]
§ Dr. ReidWe are not aware of a recent report from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament concerning the costs of Trident. We have, however, recently received a number of letters and postcards on this subject. Our latest estimate of the total acquisition cost of the Trident programme is £12.57 billion at 1996–97 economic conditions, over £3.6 billion less in real terms than the original 1982 estimate. Operating costs are estimated to be some £200 million per annum over a 30 year in-service life.
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for a nuclear weapons system to replace Trident; and if he will make a statement. [4408]
§ Mr. SpellarDecisions on a successor to Trident would not be needed for a number of years. They could be taken in the light of progress towards our goal of verifiable global nuclear disarmament.