Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2021 to Question 90329 on Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation, which recommendations in the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament her Department does not support.

The UK supports the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament and agrees with the principles behind its recommendations. The UK has made significant progress in fulfilling certain recommendations including in reducing our nuclear arsenal to the minimum credible level and reducing the role of nuclear weapons in our security policies. However, the Integrated Review set out the current deteriorating strategic security environment which limits further unilateral action from the UK at this time. In this context, the UK cannot further reduce our arsenal or the role our nuclear weapons play in our policies and doctrine, nor can we tighten our negative security assurances. Our NPT national report highlights the UK's continued commitment to the long-term goal of a world without nuclear weapons and our work to facilitate progress towards nuclear disarmament.