Tim Farron faces a test of his authority in his first conference as Liberal Democrat leader after urging activists to oppose a motion on scrapping Trident.



The Lib Dem leader has acknowledged that the proposal due to be voted on at the gathering in Bournemouth was “seductive” but the party had to consider the implications for the UK’s global standing if it abandoned the nuclear deterrent.

The motion, backed by former MP Julian Huppert, calls for plans to renew the Trident weapons system to be scrapped, with the existing warheads decommissioned at the earliest possible opportunity.

An amendment tabled by the party’s establishment would commit the Lib Dems to voting against a like-for-like replacement for Trident and establish a committee to consider future policy on the nuclear deterrent.

In an article aimed at grassroots activists on the Lib Dem Voice website before the conference, Farron said: “Undoubtedly the lure of a definitive, ‘no ifs, no buts’ position on nuclear disarmament is seductive.

“It’s true that we are no longer locked in a cold war climate and the costs of Trident replacement are staggering – particularly in the current austerity world we live in.”

He added: “That’s why I am absolutely clear that Lib Dems will vote against renewal of the current Trident programme if it comes before the House of Commons.

“What’s more, we’ll work to push for this vote to happen because there is absolutely no reason why the Tory government should be allowed to wave through a decision on such an important issue.

“We should say loud and clear that Lib Dems don’t support like-for-like replacement of Trident and I will happily lead the charge.”

But he added that in the “current, uncertain international climate”, particularly the “unpredictability” of Russia’s Vladimir Putin, “we need to be absolutely sure that neither our security nor that of our neighbours is compromised” by a decision over nuclear weapons.

“The current motion doesn’t answer those questions, and we also risk dismissing other credible policy positions which could potentially start us on the path to nuclear disarmament more quickly and be more likely to bring other nuclear states along with us,” he said.