Scrap Trident to save troops’ jobs

HAS defence minister Philip Hammond been out of the country? Has no-one told him that Scotland is to hold a ­referendum in two years’ time with a view of opting out of the Union? Is he not aware, whether we win or lose this referendum, the majority of Scots want Trident and all its accessories out of our country?

He has just visited Faslane and has reported that he does not believe the Scots will vote to leave the Union and has pledged £350 million to upgrade Trident. He waves his arms in the air boasting of the jobs that this will bring to Faslane but he makes no mention on his recent statement that he will make 20,000 members of the armed forces redundant. These are proud men that signed on for a specific period to serve Queen and country, and surely he has no right to break that contract.

Some 8,000 members of the armed forces are to be told that their services are no longer required. What are these men to tell their families? That they are not good enough? The MoD does not think so and they will be flung on the scrapheap.

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When the government is seeking to get people back to work, here we have the defence secretary with a stroke of his pen adding 20,000 to the huge list of unemployed. If he scrapped Trident there would be no need to make these much-needed experienced ­soldiers redundant.

R Ritchie, Livingston

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