Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey is set to argue that Britain must develop a fully independent nuclear deterrent, free from reliance on the United States, amid concerns over Donald Trump's reliability as an ally. In a speech at the party's spring conference in York, Davey will say that the UK can no longer assume American support for European security is guaranteed.
Davey will highlight that the UK's Trident nuclear programme is heavily dependent on US input, with missiles leased from America and requiring maintenance at US facilities. 'The operability of our deterrent ultimately depends on the goodwill of whoever sits in the Oval Office,' he is expected to tell delegates. 'A few years ago, that didn’t feel like an issue. It certainly feels like one now.'
The Lib Dem leader will cite Trump's threats to annex Greenland and his approach to the war in Ukraine as evidence of an unreliable ally. 'While Trump is in charge, we certainly cannot rely on America as a dependable ally in the way we used to,' Davey will say. 'And we can no longer bet our nation’s security on the hope that the US won’t produce new versions of Trump in the future.'
Acknowledging the cost, Davey will concede that building a sovereign nuclear capability would 'cost billions over the next two decades.' However, he will argue that this money should be invested in British science and manufacturing rather than 'handing billions of taxpayers’ hard-earned cash to the American defence and technology industry.'
The speech is part of what has been dubbed 'Operation Epsom Fury,' an attempt to attract voters disillusioned by the UK's relationship with Trump ahead of May's local elections. Davey will stress that while the Liberal Democrats remain committed to multilateral nuclear disarmament, the current global situation—including Vladimir Putin's stockpile of over 5,000 nuclear warheads—requires dealing with the world as it is.
