Defence
War is the enemy. We must not have another war. If we are forced to declare war, we have already lost.
| The Peoples Party must: |
|---|
| recognise that a fundamentally different approach to national security is required |
| not look for “enemies” but build friendships, seeking to understand the causes of tensions, defusing them before they lead to conflict. In today’s world, we must focus on stopping wars, not planning to fight them |
| as a prelude to nuclear disarmament, work to ensure that nuclear states abandon Launch on Warning, the hair-trigger that leaves them and us less than 60 minutes from Armageddon caused by accident, miscalculation, human or computer error |
| double intelligence and technology expenditure to £8bn. Covert actions, smart interventions and “winning without trumpeting” are vital to keeping us safe from the threats we face |
| cut traditional defence expenditure dramatically to £10bn. Most of what is currently spent on defence is not geared to effective defence against a realistic threat |
| focus defence on four areas: building a drone and missile shield, countering sub-sea sabotage, protecting vital national infrastructure and foiling cyberattack/cybercrime |
| create an integrated British Defence Force (BDF), merging the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force with the intelligence services and a new national police force |
| sell or scrap most of our current weapons systems. Already defence budgets have been hollowed out to such an extent that only a small fraction of existing materiel is really operational and deployable |
| ensure that the UK works with partners in NATO to concentrate on the development of small special forces units designed to undertake continuous worldwide operations against terrorist threats and to support allies with training and equipment. We must leverage our involvement to give the best-value outcomes |
| working with others to actively stop potential dictators from gaining power and remove them should they prove successful. Leaders not peoples cause wars. Work to change hostile and potentially dangerous regimes from within, supporting and encouraging dissent |
| rejoin the EU to work with partners and allies to protect peace in Europe, the source of hundreds of years of conflict |
| invest in, develop and deploy a full range of drone, AI and autonomous capabilities, creating an agile procurement, support and operational environment |
| use financial-warfare, information-warfare and cyber warfare technologies to frustrate and defeat actual and potential threats while protecting the United Kingdom from counterattacks. We must proactively hack the hackers and financially cripple threats to peace |
| decommission Trident and stop its replacement. We must redouble efforts to prevent nuclear material from getting into the hands of terrorists and rogue states |
| sign the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and lead efforts to deliver a world without nuclear weapons |
| ensure that sufficient funding is allocated to civil defence equipment against WMDs, with the comprehensive provision of PPE, vaccines and medicines |
| guard against gain-of-function biotechnology and dangers of artificial intelligence |
First and foremost, we face a very real threat to our survival that could devastate Britain in less than 60 minutes. Ignoring this does not make it disappear, and it is crucial that we tackle the issue if we are serious about national security and want to provide genuine defence.
Britain must take the lead; in particular, we should dedicate ourselves to persuading superpowers to abandon Launch on Warning and stand down nuclear weapons. Despite our current differences, far more unites us than divides us. The current situation threatens the national security of every nation.
The argument is not whether we should spend 2.5%, 3% or 5% of GDP on defence, but about doing what is necessary to guarantee peace. The debate over marginal differences in defence spending trivialises this life-or-death issue and shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of modern war and its consequences.
War is dreadful, and unless conflict is stopped once and for all, mankind will destroy the planet. We are engaged in a global effort to prevent conflict. We need to learn the lessons of history, but that alone is not enough. For centuries, people have echoed the same sentiment, yet wars still occur. To succeed, we must do things differently.
Instead of choosing the easy way by continuing as before with all the risks of conflict, we should rethink how to achieve lasting peace effectively. To prevent war at all costs, we must invest in excellent statecraft, addressing the root causes of war and banning the weapons that enable it.
The world will not change overnight. In the short term, we must invest in highly effective, low-cost defensive weapons that deter aggression and can, if necessary, be supplied and used by allies to defeat threats. We must protect strategic infrastructure such as internet cables by building redundancy, and work with allies to establish a European missile shield. In the longer term, we must lead multilateral initiatives to eliminate weapons altogether.
Our traditional force structures are mostly for show. Spending money on “paper tigers” does nothing to improve security. We must slim down the bloated MoD and Service bureaucracy, put an end to the repeated procurement failures, and purchase the weapons we truly need.
We must abolish the UK’s nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons are not just larger bombs; they are truly horrifying, have no practical military purpose, and would cause, if used, unimaginable death and destruction – there are no circumstances in which we should “press the button”. It makes no sense to worry about climate change while investing in weapons that could trigger an extinction-level event. We should utilise the skills of nuclear engineers to save, not potentially destroy, the planet.
We need to recognise that military force cannot effectively deter many of the real threats we face. These include terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, cyber and hybrid warfare, pandemics, and “accidental conflicts”, set against the backdrop of the urgent and immediate danger of climate change. We must also keep these challenges in perspective. For example, creating an atmosphere of fear is what terrorists aim to achieve; it limits freedom and diverts disproportionate resources from other important areas.
Cyber threats are serious, and a large part of online fraud and crimes against British citizens comes from abroad. The financial damage and potentially life-threatening consequences of these attacks must be addressed effectively. We need to take proactive steps to respond to these threats and ensure our country is properly protected against both state and non-state actors.