NEWS:

There is an online story about union positioning ahead of Scottish Labour conference:http://www.glasgowsouthandeastwoodextra.co.uk/news/scottish-headlines/unions-set-for-trident-battle-at-scottish-labour-conference-1-3928450  Labour CND are holding a fringe meeting on Friday evening. During the day on Friday there will be leafleting to publicise this meeting and to attempt to influence the vote on holding a debate. If there is going to be a debate, then there will be further leafleting and lobbying on Saturday to encourage delegates to vote against Trident.

A new report from Reuters shows that the true cost of renewing Trident will be far higher than the huge sums already mentioned. The new estimate is £167 billion. The figure comes from Crispin Blunt MP, based on information from Defence Minister Philip Dunne, taking account of current inflation forecasts. Blunt said “My office calculation based on an in-service date of 2028 and a missile extension until 2060 .. the total cost is 167 billion pounds” http://reut.rs/1Gqt6kS The news comes amid speculation that the Scottish Labour Party conference is likely to discuss Trident in Perth on Sunday 1 November.
CND has condemned a UK-China deal that will see nuclear power stations built at Hinkley Point in Somerset, Sizewell in Suffolk, and Bradwell in Essex. Nuclear power is a dangerous and expensive energy source, and is not a sustainable solution to our energy needs.
Today’s announcement comes after a 2014 European Commission investigation that looked into state subsidies of nuclear power. Despite state aid being illegal under EU law, the commission gave the Hinkley Point C project the go-ahead.
CND says thank you to everyone who attended the AGM and scrapping Trident conference on 17thand 18th October. We were pleased to welcome speakers from across the political, legal and campaigning spectrum to strategise together to scrap Trident. I hope you’ll agree that it was a most inspirational and energised two days! And it was great to welcome Jeremy Corbyn MP to his new role as vice-president!
Take a look at the photos from the event on Facebook and keep an eye on the CND website for a full conference write-up. It’ll be posted soon.

MEETINGS and EVENTS:

1. Edinburgh CND meeting Monday 2nd November 6pm at ACE 17 W Montgomery Pl, Edinburgh EH7 5HA. We will be discussing our contribution to the work of Nukewatch (who monitor Nuclear Transport) including showing a short film

2. Divestment, Debt, and Redeployment: Ending the Arms Trade in Scotland Saturday October 31st, 11.15 am – 3.30 pm
St. Cuthbert’s Parish Church, 5 Lothian Rd, Edinburgh, EH1 2EP
Tickets are free. Vegetarian lunch is included. You can book your tickets online today using eventbrite, or call Jubilee Scotland on 0131 225 4321to make a booking over the phone. A small number of tickets will be available on the door, but it’s best to book now to avoid disappointment! The conference, will gather speakers from across the social and environmental justice sector, as well as Scottish decision makers and MSPs, to explore: How can we make a shift from arms to renewables, and redeploy engineering skills from developing weapons to fighting climate change? How can we show solidarity with countries in the global south fighting against unfair debt, and prevent governments from burdening them with new debts to pay for expensive weapons systems? Includes Campaign launch for Edinburgh CAATs new campaign calling on the Scottish government to divest its pension investments from the rams trade. After their hugely successful campaign to end arms company sponsorship of the Edinburgh Science Festival, the group have set their sights even higher and teamed up with John Finnie MSP to fight for the Scottish Parliament’s pension fund to be ethically invested. (see also stop press at end)
3. Stop Trident lobby of Westminster Parliament 1pm, 4th November Book a meeting with your MP for a chat about your views on Trident on 4th November. You can make an appointment to meet them directly through the CND website: http://act.cnduk.org/lobby/CNDlobby.
4. Don’t Bank on the Bomb Working Group meeting is currently scheduled for 5pm on Tuesday 10 November. This will be planning for the Launch event, the Parliamentary Briefing and public actions around the launch. On the same day at 5:15pm People and Planet, have their first meeting with the Vice Principle this semester, in which he is looking for their suggestions on reinvestment. This is a key moment of their campaign, which they want to use to push for further divestment whilst also steering them towards ethical reinvestment of the funds. They are planning a demonstration outside the meeting on Edin Uni campus from 5pm on and are asking if we can support that and then have the DBOTB meeting at a University venue around 6.30/7pm

5. Edinburgh CND Leafleting: Saturday 14th 1230 at the East End of Princes Street

6. Don’t Bank on the Bomb Scotland Campaign Launch City of Edinburgh Methodist Church 25 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh EH8 9BX 16th NovemberTea, coffee and cake from 7pm.
Speakers 7:15 – 8pm. Q&A / Discussion: 8 – 8:30pm. Planning for future campaigning 8:30 – 9pm.
Please Book a place on EventBrite so we have an idea of numbers for catering. http://dontbankonthebombscotlandlaunch.eventbrite.co.uk

7. Scrap Trident Skillshare: the Glasgow event was successful and the Edinburgh event will be on Saturday 14th November (see earlier posts). The next planning group is on Wednesday 28th October 6pm in the Peace and Justice Centre, St John’s Terrace (Princes St/Lothian Rd)

8.  Walk of Pride, Tuesday, 17 November starting 12 pm, Dewar’s statue Glasgow, proceeding to the City Chambers A tribute to radical Glasgow on the 100th anniversary of the rent strikes and mass march of 1915                      9. Stop Trident: Decision Time National demonstration 20th February 2016Edinburgh. NEW DATE OF 27th FEBRUARY 2016 FOR STOP TRIDENT: DECISION TIME DEMONSTRATION
Due to a double-booking at Trafalgar Square, the CND Stop Trident: Decision Time 2016 national demonstration will now be held on 27th February – one week later than initially planned. Full, updated details are available at the CND website. Please watch this space for any developments.

STOP PRESS Today (25th) Friends of the Earth Scotland somewhat quietly launched a campaign to divest the Scottish Parliament Pensions.  Story in the Sunday Herald: Estimated investments in 2015:
Fossil fuels total: £2,140,023
Arms total: £586,841
Tobacco total: £473,987
They have created an e-action which people can use to raise this with MSPs