Cabinet minister urges more open debate on Trident replacement
-25/09/06
Cabinet Minist
Cabinet minister urges more open debate on Trident replacement
-25/09/06
Cabinet Minister Peter Hain has issued a call for the Labour leadership to open up debate on the replacement of Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.
The party risked losing the support of “progressive” sections of society if it tried to impose a decision reached by “a couple of cabinet ministers” behind closed doors, he warned.
The comments came a few days after the leader of the Anglican Church in Wales added his voice to growing church opposition against upgrading the UK’s Trident nuclear missile system.
Church leaders recently finished a “Long Walk for Peace” in Scotland to express their feelings.
In April, Scotlandís eight Roman Catholic bishops made their own position ñ and that of the Church ñ clear. A month later, Scotland’s churches launched a joint petition urging the UK Government not to replace the Trident system.
Last year, British church leaders wrote to a national newspaper urging that the Government spell out the conditions under which it might forego a replacement of Trident.
Peter Hain’s comments came as a row blew up over the decision by organisers of this week’s Labour conference in Manchester to exclude a series of motions calling for a debate on Trident from the conference floor.
Delegates have complained that this is the party’s only opportunity for a full public discussion before a decision on the £25b weapons system is made by the end of this year.
Mr Hain was speaking at a debate hosted by the New Statesman magazine alongside three other potential contenders to replace John Prescott as Labour’s deputy leader.
Mr Hain has already declared his candidacy and his support for Gordon Brown as leader, said Labour needed “to do policy in a different way”, particularly on the issue of Trident. Brown however has already said he supports a replacement for Trident.
“We were elected on a manifesto to keep Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent,” Hain said. “The issue is what it should be replaced with.
“The debate about that shouldn’t be confined to a couple of cabinet ministers. It should involve the party, it should involve the movement, it should involve people in civil society and the wider public who have got something to contribute.
Justice Minister Ms Harman, who has made clear she will stand for deputy leader and believes the post should go to a woman, warned Labour had “lost public trust”, particularly over foreign policy.
She urged former members who have left the party over recent years – many of them in protest at the war in Iraq – to re-join Labour to have a say over the selection of its new leader.
“Come back to your party and shape its future,” she urged them.
To renew itself in office, Labour needed to “build on the strength of our achievements in government” but also re-engage with the public, said Ms Harman.
“The most potent symbol of our need for more engagement with the British people is in foreign policy,” she said.
“We talk about ‘your school’ or ‘your hospital’ but do we ever talk about ‘your foreign policy’? I don’t think we do, yet we do foreign policy in the name of the British people.
“That must change. People want a say in their foreign policy and we must make that happen.”
Meanwhile, International Development Secretary Mr Benn said Labour needed to build on the engagement with the public seen in last year’s ‘Make Poverty History’ campaign.
The party’s future programme should be based on the principles of “global social justice”, quality of life issues and enabling people to take up opportunities in the new world of globalisation, he said.
And he added: “Most importantly, we have got to show by what we do that making decisions about these great changes is not something that can be done by politicians to others. These are things that have to be done together.”
Recalling the G8 Gleneagles summit which led to many of the world’s poorest countries having their international debt cancelled, Mr Benn said: “This was politics working to make a difference and win people’s trust.
“It is only when we win and retain the people’s trust that we have the chance as the left to make a difference.”
Mr Benn, who has not yet indicated whether he will run for deputy leader, said that Labour had to show how it could shape a changing world “in keeping with the values of our party and our movement.”
Mr Benn and Ms Harman both backed the call for a wide debate over Trident.
The International Development Secretary said: “I think there should be a debate, both in conference, in the party, in the country and in Parliament.
“The threat that we face in the world has changed but there’s a real debate to be had over how we put that commitment into effect.
Ms Harman said billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money was at stake.
“There are choices to be made about what that money is spent on. Of course people need to have a view.
“And it’s their security too. They have got to have a view.”
She said it was no good harking back to an “age of deference” when people expected politicians to make good decisions for them.
“That’s not the spirit of the age and that’s a good thing too.”
They were responding to complaints from a conference delegate that any chance of a “sensible debate” on the issue was being stifled.
Cabinet minister urges more open debate on Trident replacement
-25/09/06
Cabinet Minister Peter Hain has issued a call for the Labour leadership to open up debate on the replacement of Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.
The party risked losing the support of “progressive” sections of society if it tried to impose a decision reached by “a couple of cabinet ministers” behind closed doors, he warned.
The comments came a few days after the leader of the Anglican Church in Wales added his voice to growing church opposition against upgrading the UK’s Trident nuclear missile system.
Church leaders recently finished a “Long Walk for Peace” in Scotland to express their feelings.
In April, Scotlandís eight Roman Catholic bishops made their own position ñ and that of the Church ñ clear. A month later, Scotland’s churches launched a joint petition urging the UK Government not to replace the Trident system.
Last year, British church leaders wrote to a national newspaper urging that the Government spell out the conditions under which it might forego a replacement of Trident.
Peter Hain’s comments came as a row blew up over the decision by organisers of this week’s Labour conference in Manchester to exclude a series of motions calling for a debate on Trident from the conference floor.
Delegates have complained that this is the party’s only opportunity for a full public discussion before a decision on the £25b weapons system is made by the end of this year.
Mr Hain was speaking at a debate hosted by the New Statesman magazine alongside three other potential contenders to replace John Prescott as Labour’s deputy leader.
Mr Hain has already declared his candidacy and his support for Gordon Brown as leader, said Labour needed “to do policy in a different way”, particularly on the issue of Trident. Brown however has already said he supports a replacement for Trident.
“We were elected on a manifesto to keep Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent,” Hain said. “The issue is what it should be replaced with.
“The debate about that shouldn’t be confined to a couple of cabinet ministers. It should involve the party, it should involve the movement, it should involve people in civil society and the wider public who have got something to contribute.
Justice Minister Ms Harman, who has made clear she will stand for deputy leader and believes the post should go to a woman, warned Labour had “lost public trust”, particularly over foreign policy.
She urged former members who have left the party over recent years – many of them in protest at the war in Iraq – to re-join Labour to have a say over the selection of its new leader.
“Come back to your party and shape its future,” she urged them.
To renew itself in office, Labour needed to “build on the strength of our achievements in government” but also re-engage with the public, said Ms Harman.
“The most potent symbol of our need for more engagement with the British people is in foreign policy,” she said.
“We talk about ‘your school’ or ‘your hospital’ but do we ever talk about ‘your foreign policy’? I don’t think we do, yet we do foreign policy in the name of the British people.
“That must change. People want a say in their foreign policy and we must make that happen.”
Meanwhile, International Development Secretary Mr Benn said Labour needed to build on the engagement with the public seen in last year’s ‘Make Poverty History’ campaign.
The party’s future programme should be based on the principles of “global social justice”, quality of life issues and enabling people to take up opportunities in the new world of globalisation, he said.
And he added: “Most importantly, we have got to show by what we do that making decisions about these great changes is not something that can be done by politicians to others. These are things that have to be done together.”
Recalling the G8 Gleneagles summit which led to many of the world’s poorest countries having their international debt cancelled, Mr Benn said: “This was politics working to make a difference and win people’s trust.
“It is only when we win and retain the people’s trust that we have the chance as the left to make a difference.”
Mr Benn, who has not yet indicated whether he will run for deputy leader, said that Labour had to show how it could shape a changing world “in keeping with the values of our party and our movement.”
Mr Benn and Ms Harman both backed the call for a wide debate over Trident.
The International Development Secretary said: “I think there should be a debate, both in conference, in the party, in the country and in Parliament.
“The threat that we face in the world has changed but there’s a real debate to be had over how we put that commitment into effect.
Ms Harman said billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money was at stake.
“There are choices to be made about what that money is spent on. Of course people need to have a view.
“And it’s their security too. They have got to have a view.”
She said it was no good harking back to an “age of deference” when people expected politicians to make good decisions for them.
“That’s not the spirit of the age and that’s a good thing too.”
They were responding to complaints from a conference delegate that any chance of a “sensible debate” on the issue was being stifled.