Scots urged to vote in anti-nuclear MPs to 'take target off our backs'

The Scottish CND's new campaign aims to push voters to back candidates who support the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

We previously reported how the SNP said they would support signing the document, which would entirely outlaw nuclear weapons across the globe, after achieving independence.

What is the campaign?

With a new set of slogans and illustrations, the Scottish CND says it has launched its latest campaign amid a time of mounting conflict, with Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The campaign slogan “Take The Target Off Our Back” will elevate a series of issues to show how money spent on nuclear weapons could be redeployed for other means such as improving health services.

The Scottish CND's new campaign aims to put a focus on candidates who are against nuclear weapons. 

Commenting on the new campaign, Scottish CND chair Lynn Jamieson said: “Scotland deserves better than being made ready for a new generation of weapons of mass destruction.

“Candidates who still justify nuclear weapons with the magical-thinking-myth of ‘deterrence’ and the implicit claim that ‘my might is right’ do not deserve your vote.

New graphics designed for the campaign aim to highlight what money spent on nuclear weapons could be used for. 

“They are part of the problem. Only vote for candidates committed to a future Scotland without nuclear weapons.

“Keeping the nuclear arms race going has enabled rather than prevented conflict while diverting countless millions of our money away from work on climate change and making Scotland the best we can be.”

Back in the spotlight

Debate over nuclear weaponry has been back in the headlines of late after Keir Starmer unveiled Labour’s Trident “triple lock” plans.

Labour said they will continue the Government’s plans for the ongoing construction of four new nuclear submarines being built in Barrow-in-Furness and maintain the at-sea deterrent.

The third commitment is a pledge to deliver upgrades for nuclear submarines and, although the move was widely condemned, Anas Sarwar was among those to defend the plans.

In Scotland, HM Naval Base Clyde – commonly known as Faslane – is home to the UK’s nuclear deterrent.

John Swinney (above) meanwhile said the UK Government should instead focus on investing in the conventional military, which has been depleted in recent years.

“There’s only a small minority of countries that have nuclear deterrents and I don’t think the UK can afford a nuclear deterrent, I don’t think there’s a moral argument for it either,” the First Minister said.

In 2017, the UK rejected the TPNW by saying that it “clearly disregards the realities of the international security environment”.

However, at the same time, the UK underlined a “continued commitment” to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which was signed in 1968.

The NPT says that countries which do not already have nuclear weapons cannot acquire them, while those that do must look to phase them out.

Commenting further on the new campaign, Scottish CND executive committee member Janet Fenton said: “In this election, don’t let UK parties distract us from the UK’s nuclear weapons at Faslane putting the world – and us – at risk.

“Before and since the UN negotiated the TPNW in 2017, elected representatives from Greens, SNP and others in Scotland have consistently supported it.

“Our desire to support the movement to change the UK Government could, ironically, put at risk our clearly measured and precious support for nuclear disarmament if we support UK parties that don’t listen to Scotland on this vital issue.”

A number of SNP and Green MPs and MSPs previously signed a pledge supported by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which picked up the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.

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Chris Manson, the artist behind the graphics for the new CND campaign, said: “Given the escalating conflict we’ve seen globally in recent years, I wanted to capture the sense of tension I feel whenever the threat of nuclear war is held over us.

“The palpable fear, the uncertainty and the rising anxiety of hearing these threats, all while we’re expected to carry on living our lives as normal – that I think is something everyone has experienced to some degree.”

What have parties said about the new campaign?

The National approached both the SNP and Scottish Greens on the new campaign with the latter replying to say they “will never support nuclear weapons”.

Co-leader Patrick Harvie (below) described them as a “moral abomination that have no place in a peaceful or progressive Scotland”.

“The billions of pounds that are being wasted on them would be far better spent on tackling the climate crisis, which is the greatest security threat we face, eradicating child poverty and investing in the public services we all rely on like the NHS.

“The Tories have shown that they will always uncritically support nuclear weapons. Meanwhile Labour have gone back on their flagship £28 billion environmental plan because they say they can’t afford it but is happy to commit tens of billions of pounds to renewing these weapons of mass killing.

“With Labour and Tories in lockstep on Trident and so much else, it is more important than ever that we elect voices who will stand up for peace and human rights, and against an aggressive UK foreign policy that has done so much damage.”