Nuclear weapons protest at Faslane leads to 47 arrests

250 protesters gathered today at the Faslane Naval base in Scotland to call for the UK's Trident nuclear weapons programme to be scrapped. A number of protestors chained themselves to the gates of the base and were cut free by Police Scotland officers. Around 47 people were arrested including the Green Party Edinburgh councillor Chas Booth.

The protest was organised by the Scrap Trident Coalition, which is campaigning to persuade the UK Government to scrap the Trident programme. The Scrap Trident Coalition claims that the estimated £100 billion (US$152.8 billion) to be spent over the next 50 years should be diverted to fund what the coalition defines as human needs including welfare, pensions, disability benefits, and green jobs. The protest was attended by a number of different organisations including Scottish Green Party MSP Patrick Harvie, and the Chair of the UK Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Dave Webb, as well as activists from the Stop the War Coalition.

This follows a demonstration by around 2000 people on Saturday at George Square in Glasgow, and comes during three days of protests organised by Scrap Trident in Scotland. The action is also associated with as many as 100 other protests around the world as part of a "Global Day of Action on Military Spending".

Faslane in Scotland is the home of Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde which provides support to the British Navy fleet of nuclear submarines which carry the Trident nuclear missile system. The UK Government is due to make a decision on the renewal of the UK Trident programme in 2016.