Written question asked by Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party) on Tuesday, 22 January 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 29 January 2008. It was answered by Lord Browne of Ladyton (Labour) on Monday, 4 February 2008 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Trident: Finance

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his most recent estimate is of the total annual cost of the Trident replacement system; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: [holding answer 29 January 2008]: As the December 2006 White Paper, 'The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent' (Cm 6994), made clear, we have decided to maintain our nuclear deterrent capability by procuring a new class of submarines to replace the Vanguard-class and by participating in a programme to extend the life of the Trident IID5 missile. We expect that once the new fleet of submarines comes into service the annual in-service costs of the UK's nuclear deterrent, including the costs of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, will be similar to today (around 5 to 6 per cent. of the defence budget).

Secondary information