Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the US government has made a commitment to pay the costs arising from a nuclear accident related to the (a) siting and (b) transportation of US nuclear weapons in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

While it remains longstanding UK and NATO policy to neither confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons at a given location, the UK has provisions for the US to base nuclear weapons in the UK and/or to fly them through UK airspace in support of NATO's nuclear mission.

Accordingly, bilateral arrangements are in place for responding to an emergency, accident or significant incident involving US nuclear weapons or nuclear components in the UK, including its internal waters and territorial sea. Costs ensuing from such an event would be handled in accordance with those arrangements, and the provisions of the Visiting Forces Act 1952 and NATO Status of Forces Agreement which apply to all US forces based in the UK.