A former head of the Royal Navy has warned against Labour doing a “dirty deal” with the SNP over the future of the UK’s nuclear weapons.
Admiral Lord West, a former government anti-terror adviser, also said he’d be “extremely nervous” about letting the SNP have a say in defence policy.
Lord West said: “My position is quite clear. I wouldn’t join up with the SNP, a party that wants to separate from the rest of the UK.
“I’d be extremely nervous of dealing with a group that wishes to destroy the nation I’m part of and wants to get rid of a key part of the defence of that nation.”
A decision is set to be taken next year on renewing Trident, the UK’s nuclear arms system, and giving the green light to spending billions of pounds on the project.
However, the SNP have said that they will not support the continuation of Trident and that they want Scotland to be a nuclear-free zone.
With the polls still suggesting that any administration led by Ed Miliband is likely to rely on SNP support to pass a Queen’s Speech at Westminster, the issue could bring down a Labour government.
Last week Defence Secretary Michael Fallon claimed Miliband was “willing to stab the UK in the back” by cancelling or postponing a decision on Trident in order to bag SNP backing in parliament.
However, Lord West claims putting off the Trident issue is not an option since the submarines carrying the missiles are already at the end of their lives.
He said: “We’ve got to replace Trident in 2028. It’s already been postponed too long. David Cameron is very naughty because of his linkage with the Lib Dems he put this decision off.
“He could’ve nailed it in this parliament and this wouldn’t be an election issue. He had a dirty deal to put it off we can’t have another dirty deal.”
Lord West was made a government security adviser by Gordon Brown in 2007. Though he sits on the Labour benches in the House of Lords he is not a member of the Labour Party. He produced the UK’s first National Security Strategy.
And he’s dismissed SNP claims that Scotland has suffered more than its fair share of defence cuts since 2010.
He said: “I’m not at all happy with how deep the cuts have been made since 2010. But the cuts have been done in as balanced a way as possible. You station your forces in the most appropriate place to enhance the defence of the nation.
“To do anything else would be a funny way of making defence policy. To station forces in one part of the UK for political reasons would be pork barrel politics at its worst. You put defences where you need them most.”
SNP defence spokesman Angus Robertson reiterated his party’s stance on Trident.
He said: “Unlike the Westminster establishment parties whose priorities for defence revolve around wasting £100 billion on new nuclear weapons while conventional defence spending has been slashed, the SNP recognises the folly of this approach.
“It was Labour that first cut all of the UK’s Maritime Patrol Aircraft which they are still without so we’ll take no lessons from Labour’s Lord West.
“Scotland has a record low number of personnel, bases closed and not a single major surface vessel based here. In light of this, the SNP having a say could only be positive.
“The SNP would never vote to waste over £100 billion on new nuclear weapons and Nicola Sturgeon has made clear that Trident is a red-line issue for the SNP.”
The Conservatives’ manifesto will have a commitment to build four new nuclear missile-armed submarines.
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