Jonathan Bartley: Report highlights why 'we must consign nuclear weapons to the dustbin of history'

21 September 2016

RESPONDING to a report (1) that reveals that the British public is being put at grave risk of a nuclear weapon accident and radiation leak, Jonathan Bartley, co-Leader of the Green Party said:

“This report highlights yet another reason why we must consign nuclear weapons to the dustbin of history.”

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) (2) report reveals that military convoys carrying nuclear weapons through Britain have experienced 180 mishaps and incidents, including collisions, during the last 16 years.

Bartley said:

“One of the most chilling elements of the report is the revelation of just how frequently the public has unknowingly come into such close contact with nuclear weapons. 

"Two in three (64%) British adults do not know that nuclear weapons travel past their towns and cities, let alone consent to it.  Yet this report reveals that materials for nuclear weapons are regularly driven through or flown over densely-populated areas such as Bristol, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester and on motorways such as the M40 and M25.

“No-one should have to live in fear of a radioactivity contaminating their community. Only by ditching these weapons will we eliminate the danger.”

Notes: 

1) https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/sep/21/uk-nuclear-weapons-convoys-have-had-180-mishaps-in-16-years

2) http://uk.icanw.org/

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