A LABOUR government cannot be trusted with the nuclear button, the Defence Secretary warned yesterday.
Grant Shapps insisted Sir Keir Starmer will leave the country dangerously “exposed” and “shred” Britain’s military capability.
And he stressed to voters: “You can’t trust Labour with their finger on the nuclear button.”
Sounding the alarm just days before the nation goes to the polls in this week’s General Election, Mr Shapps warned voters not to hand Labour a super-majority.
He said: “There are just five days to save Britain. It’s not too late. This is a flash warning.”
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In an exclusive interview, the Tory big beast tore into members of Sir Keir’s Shadow Cabinet who voted against renewing Britain’s nuclear deterrent.
They include its deputy leader Angela Rayner, who voted against it in 2016 under Jeremy Corbyn.
She has stuck to her guns during the 2024 election race — despite Sir Keir announcing a “triple lock” vow to maintaining the deterrent.
Mr Shapps said: “If Starmer is elected, she’ll be a heartbeat away.
“It’s not like some theory that maybe the second in command, Deputy Prime Minister, could end up doing the job.
“We’d then have somebody who doesn’t believe in and has voted against Trident in charge of our nuclear deterrent. I think that is a frightening prospect.”
And Mr Shapps took aim at Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who also voted against Trident but has since U-turned — saying that he is now “100 per cent” behind it.
Mr Shapps accused Mr Lammy of “student politics”, adding: “I can tell you from my experience as Defence Secretary, not firing it, but just having it there enables you to make decisions.”
“I can’t really go into details. But it enables you to make decisions in a way that you wouldn’t if you didn’t have a nuclear deterrent.”
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Mr Lammy has previously called Donald Trump a “neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath”.
Mr Shapps said the comments were “naïve”, and stressed the importance of Britain’s relationship with the US.
He added: “Frankly, student politics and being Foreign Secretary do not mix. I think that should be an alarming notion for Sun readers.”
Asked outright if Labour can be trusted with their finger on the nuclear button, Mr Shapps said “no” and that Sir Keir’s promise of a triple lock on nuclear is “undone” by members of his top team.
Eleven Labour shadow ministers have voted to scrap Trident in the past.
And Mr Shapps issued a stark warning over Labour’s refusal to commit to matching Rishi Sunak’s defence spending pledge of 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030.
He said Labour’s lack of a timetable means big defence cuts, adding: “It is, in my view, completely irresponsible of Starmer not to have followed us on the 2.5 per cent commitment with a timetable and it leaves our country exposed — and dangerously so.”
His team claimed it means projects like future aerial combat systems, munitions and support ships could face cuts under Labour.
Mr Shapps warned that if Labour wins the election next week, they will make cuts “this year”.
He added: “They are going to come in and, I’m afraid, shred the size of our military capability.”
Labour’s manifesto says they will have a “Strategic Defence Review” in their first year in government and “set out the path” to spending 2.5 per cent GDP on defence.
But Mr Shapps said Labour’s plan for a review was the “last thing” we needed and could take up to two years.
The Tories have promised to fund their defence spending plan by cutting the Civil Service back to the size it was pre-pandemic.
But Mr Shapps said Labour’s relationship with the unions leaves them hamstrung on doing the same.
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And asked if he believed Sir Keir was strong enough to stand up to tyrannical Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mr Shapps shot back: “I don’t think he’s strong enough to even stand up to Angela Rayner.”
The senior Cabinet minister struck a diplomatic tone when asked about Joe Biden’s disastrous TV debate against Donald Trump this week.
The President is facing calls to stand aside in the US election after he stumbled over his words.
But Mr Shapps said: “I think it’s always appropriate for British politicians not to intervene in foreign elections.”
Concerns have been raised that if Mr Trump wins the presidency again, Putin will see it as a green light to advance further into Ukraine.
And earlier this year, Mr Trump suggested the US would not protect its NATO allies failing to spend enough on defence.
But Mr Shapps said: “I think Trump will do the right thing by Ukraine. I’ve spoken to Boris [Johnson] about this, as well, in the last few months. True conservatives don’t allow their democratic friends to be eaten by autocrats.”
It’s not too late. Sun readers can still save Britain
Grant Shapps
Mr Shapps was the first senior Tory to warn against handing Sir Keir a “super-majority” as Labour soared in the polls.
As the election campaign enters its make-or-break final days, he said: “With five days to go this is a wake-up call to prevent the Starmer super-majority from materialising.
“It’s not too late. Sun readers can still save Britain from the devastating consequences of a blank cheque super-majority — no checks and balances on power.”
He also urged voters not to back Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party.
Mr Shapps went on: “A vote in any other direction, a vote for Reform candidates, enlarges the chances of a super-majority. Let’s not let that happen.”
But Sir Keir has hit back at suggestions he is weak on defence.
On a visit to meet veterans in Aldershot, Hants, he branded the attacks “desperate”.
He said: “We are the party that was a founding member of NATO.
“On the nuclear deterrent, we’re clear about the triple lock we’ve put in place — not only on the current deterrent but future upgrades of it and the jobs that go with it.”
And a Labour spokesperson added: “Labour has an unshakeable commitment to NATO and will set out the path to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence.”
