This looks at the options for locating Trident and finds there are no acceptable places in the UK.
. If the appearance of an independent antinuclear Scotland was imminent, then the London government might well remove all nuclear weapons from Scotland prior to independence. Washington might insist that the Americanbuilt missiles and the nuclear warheads, which contain American components, were removed from Faslane and Coulport, and not left on the territory of an actively anti-nuclear sovereign state.
British nuclear disarmament is a possible outcome of Scottish independence. Given the serious problems with the other options, it is the most likely result of a Yes vote. It is wrong to suggest that if Britain abandoned Trident this would have no effect on the rest of the world. On the contrary, it could break the logjam and lead to wider progress towards nuclear disarmament. Faced with a nuclear-free UK, France would have to reassess whether it should continue with its expensive nuclear programme. The combination of British disarmament and the new impetus towards a nuclear ban, from Non Nuclear States, could have a significant global impact.