Defence policy

The main provisions of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and what it means for the UK.

A Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted in the UN on 7 July 2017. It received ratification by its 50th State Party on 24 October 2020. It will now enter force in January 2021. It is the first multilateral, legally-binding, instrument for nuclear disarmament to have been negotiated in 20 years. However, the nuclear weapon states have declared their intention not to sign and ratify the new treaty. As non-signatories they are not legally bound by its provisions. The lack of engagement by the nuclear weapon states subsequently raises the question of what this treaty can realistically achieve?

A general debate on 'Remembrance, UK Armed Forces and Society' is scheduled to take place in the Main Chamber on Wednesday 11 November 2020.

The French nuclear deterrent is the one that is most often compared to the UK’s nuclear forces. While there are similarities in terms of policy, posture and size, there are also significant differences in terms of industrial support and cost. In contrast to the UK all of the major political parties in France support an independent nuclear deterrent, and domestic support is high. This paper examines the French nuclear deterrent in greater detail. It is also part of a wider Library briefing series on nuclear weapons.

The UK is sending 250 soldiers to Mali to join the UN peacekeeping mission in 2020. Mali faces considerable political, security and governance challenges, compounded by a military coup in August 2020. This Commons Library briefing paper looks at the deployment and the situation in Mali.

The Government presented the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill on 18 March 2020, thereby meeting its 100-day self imposed deadline. Second Reading has been scheduled for 23 September 2020. Aspects of the Bill are already generating controversy.

The government has announced it will not proceed with plans to introduce a new combat compensation scheme for armed forces personnel and veterans. This paper briefly explains the original proposals, concerns raised and the government's announcement.

On 26 February 2020, the Prime Minister set out the government’s approach to the Integrated Review of security, defence, development and foreign affairs. This paper provides links to a selection of news, analysis and comment on the upcoming Integrated Review.

This short Commons Library briefing paper examines UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia.

The Ministry of Defence published a review of the Service Police as part of a wider review of the Service Justice System. This Commons Library briefing paper discusses who the Service Police are, what they do, and the outcome of the review.

In a vote in July 2016 the House of Commons approved the decision to maintain the UK’s nuclear deterrent beyond the early 2030s. After almost a decade of work on the project, that vote subsequently enabled the programme to move forward into its manufacturing phase, which will see the construction of four new Dreadnought class ballistic missile submarines over the next 15-20 years.

In February 2020 the Government confirmed the existence of a replacement warhead programme for its nuclear deterrent. A decision on replacement has been long-awaited, with work on possible options underway since 2006.

The tables in this paper provide a summary of the UK and EU positions in the future relationship negotiations, based on their proposed draft treaty texts and other publicly available statements