Britain spends $5 billion on Trident:
"Britain will spend nearly $5 billion to prepare the development of a new generation of nuclear-armed submarines, which critics say are too expensive.
Defense Secretary Liam Fox Wednesday told Members of Parliament that a study of alternatives to the so-called Trident program was also being prepared. That's an obvious nod to the Liberal Democrats, the junior coalition partner, which has in the past said developing and maintaining the very costly nuclear deterrent is unnecessary.
Critics of the system argue it is a remnant of the Cold War, adding that decision to renew it was rushed through Parliament to help BAE Systems, the British company that builds the submarines.
Fox would disagree. The conservatives are in favor of renewing Trident.
'The nuclear deterrent provides the ultimate guarantee of our national security,' Fox said Wednesday. 'We cannot dismiss the possibility that a major direct nuclear threat to the United Kingdom might re-emerge.'"
