Achi news desk-
“Westminster has already wasted billions of taxpayers’ money on nuclear weapons and expensive nuclear power. It is grotesque to throw another £200million down the drain when the Tories and Labor claim there is no money to improve our NHS , to help families with the cost of living or invest properly in our green energy future.
“This money would be much better spent on a host of other priorities – above all investing in the green energy gold rush, which would ensure that Scotland, with its wealth of renewable energy potential, able to be a green energy powerhouse in the 21st century.
“And while the UK government wastes millions of pounds misfiring Trident missiles at Defense Secretary Grant Shapps, the urgent priority is more money for conventional defense and for our armed forces, which are underpaid and without enough resources.
“With Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer focusing on the wrong priorities – only the SNP stands up for Scottish interests and Scottish values.”
The First Minister is expected to declare a “crucial national effort” to secure the future of the nuclear industry during a visit to Barrow-in-Furness on Monday.
Number 10 hopes the money will create more than 8,000 career opportunities to help the sector fill 40,000 new roles by the end of the decade.
But speaking to Times Radio earlier on Monday, nuclear minister Andrew Bowie, whose party has been in power since 2010, acknowledged that plans for the industry are long overdue.
He said: “I make no bones about it, we should have done this years ago. We are running to catch up.
“But we have just presented our civilian nuclear road map this year, we have announced our intention to build a third gigawatt project, we are investing £350 million in new nuclear power to ease Vladimir Putin out of the nuclear fuel market, we really are. is committed to providing small modular reactors through our competition which ends this year.
“But of course this should have been done years ago, which is why we have to act the way we are now.”
Companies including BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, EDF and Babcock are partnering with the Government to invest around £763 million in skills, jobs and education for the defense and civil nuclear industries.
Mr Sunak is also expected to announce a new fund backed by £20 million of public money to support growth in Barrow-in-Furness, the Cumbria town that is home to Britain’s nuclear submarine programme.
It will commit to a further £180 million a year over the next decade, which Downing Street says would provide grants to local organizations and improvements to transport and health outcomes in the area.
Ahead of his visit to Barrow-in-Furness, Mr Sunak said: “Securing the future of our nuclear deterrence industry and nuclear power is a vital national endeavour.
“In a more dangerous and more contested world, the UK’s continued nuclear deterrence at sea is more vital than ever. And nuclear provides consumers with cheaper and cleaner home energy.
“That’s why we’re investing in Barrow, the home of UK submarines, and the jobs and skills of the future in Britain’s thriving nuclear industry.
“Today we are ushering in the next generation of our nuclear enterprise, which will keep us safe, keep our energy safe, and keep our bills down forever.”
The Nuclear Enterprise Defense Order Paper, which the Government says will set out for the first time the breadth of activity aimed at maintaining and modernizing Britain’s ongoing nuclear deterrent at sea, will also be laid before the Parliament on Monday.
The announcement follows weeks of criticism over the Government’s opposition to calls for an increase in defense spending amid concerns about the global risk posed by countries such as Russia and China.
In a visible sign of unease within Tory ranks, Foreign Office minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan and security minister Tom Tugendhat said earlier this month that a “much faster pace” of investment was needed, while Defense Secretary Grant Shapps called for for military spending to rise to 3% of GDP.
Mr Sunak has said the Government has already announced the biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the Cold War and “recently added billions of pounds to strengthen our nuclear initiative and rebuild stockpiles”.
John Healey, Labour’s shadow defense secretary, welcomed the Government’s commitment but said Labor had “long argued” for ministers to secure jobs in Barrow and that Britain would be “better protected” under his party.
