Study counts cost of Trident

Britain would save almost £84bn over the next 50 years if it were to abandon plans to replace the submarines that launch its independent nuclear deterrent, according to a study of the long-term costs of maintaining the capability.

As politicians at Westminster debate whether the UK should begin building boats to carry the Trident D-5 missile, an independent cross-party commission has published a report detailing what the long-term savings from cancellation would be.

According to the study by Basic, a think-tank, cancellation of the nuclear weapons programme would produce “substantial cost savings of £83.5bn over the period 2016 to 2062, equivalent to an annual average saving of £1.86bn a year”.

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