ABSTRACT
The Labour Party has advocated a reduction in defence expenditure and cutbacks on the arms trade for many years. The 1974 General Election Manifesto promised to: ‘reduce the proportion of the nation’s resources devoted to defence so that the burden we bear will be brought into line with that carried by our main European allies’. An important objection to proposals is that they would lead to unemployment in the defence industries. The report which follows is based on a detailed, three-year study of the issues raised. The study group received evidence from a wide range of defence specialists, trade unionists from the defence industries, and politicians with an interest in this area. The study group believes it necessary to underline the point that vast sums of taxpayers’ money are spent under a cloud of quite unnecessary secrecy.
