Airstrip One

You know what they say about the size of your bomb

While I'm all in favour of the nuclear detterent, is the current plan for a "small nukes" factory at Aldermaston really that sensible?

The idea is to deploy these "against terrorist groups and rogue states". Now we haven't had to worry about a rogue state near us since De Valera kicked the bucket in the emerald Isle. And although I like to think of myself as hawkish on dealing with the IRA I somehow don't think that we'll be nuking the Falls Road.

So the idea is to complement America's (current) obsessions. What happens if they topple Saddam and finally fry Bin Laden? Will we be left holding the baby. Considering our continued membership of the EU after the Cold War, it will hardly be the first time.

If we want to invest in something nuclear, then why not an independent geo-positioning system for our missiles? At the moment we rely on the American system, a few hundred million would be able to launch enough sattelites to provide a fairly basic service and we would once again have that independent nuclear deterrent about which we boast so emptily.

However before I sound too critical, it is good to see some planning for the succession after Trident.