[Jack_Macca]

"Between £15bn and £20bn would be spent on new submarines to carry the Trident missiles. The fleet would take 17 years to develop and build, and would then last until about 2050. "

Who said any different? You don't get technology like that at Walmart. The point is that the Commons voted for the upgrades.

[jveritas]

You do not downsize the British fleet by half when the new fleet will not be ready until 43 years from now. Who ever planned this is a total idiot.

[kabar]

Who said any different? You don't get technology like that at Walmart. The point is that the Commons voted for the upgrades.

My point was that "there's many a slip between the cup and the lip." Much can happen within the next 17 years that could derail those plans of building new submarines for the Trident. The UK's declining expenditures on defense must be weighed on the availability of resources in the future and priorities. I can see a future labor government opting out of having nuclear weapons and relying on the US to provide the nuclear umbrella similar to what Japan does.