The SNP has unveiled its vision for an independent Scottish military – claiming the north and north-east would benefit from higher troop numbers and more advanced capabilities.
New details have emerged on the party’s plans to keep Scotland’s main air force base at Lossiemouth, with at least 12 Typhoon fighter jets to be retained there initially, rising to 16 within five years.
Lossiemouth could also be turned into a home for about four newly purchased maritime patrol aircraft, which would be the only planes of their kind in the UK following the scrapping of the Kinloss-based Nimrods in 2011.
The long-awaited independence white paper, published yesterday, revealed that if the SNP was in power in 2016 it would negotiate with Westminster over the potential establishment of “joint facilities” at the Moray base as well.
The move raises the prospect of the UK Government being offered the option of retaining an RAF presence at Lossiemouth, possibly even another Typhoon squadron.
The future of the Army barracks at Kinloss, also in Moray, and Fort George, near Inverness, would also be safeguarded under independence, according to the blueprint, although there is little detail of personnel numbers at the bases.
Weapons ranges in the north of Scotland, including the test sites on the Hebrides and at Cape Wrath, would continue to be used too.
Overall, a phased build-up of military forces is envisaged, starting at 7,500 regular and 2,000 reserve personnel at the point of independence, rising to about 10,000 regulars and 3,500 reserves within five years, before reaching of 15,000 regulars and 5,000 reserves within a decade.
The army units would take on the names and traditions of Scotland’s historic regiments, such as the Black Watch and Highlanders.
Trident nuclear weapons would be removed from the Clyde in the first parliamentary term after independence.
SNP defence spokesman and Moray MP Angus Robertson, said: “These defence plans are a real boost for Moray and the north of Scotland. They give long-term certainty to our local bases, with widened military capabilities and the prospect of higher personnel numbers being stationed here.
“This is great news for personnel and their families who want a long-term future here, able to make better decisions about their home life, schooling arrangements for their children and a more settled and enhanced career path in Scotland.”
Labour defence spokeswoman Gemma Doyle, West Dunbartonshire MP, said: “This falls far below the level of detail we were all expecting. The SNP have not included any set-up costs or any costed procurement plans. Their desire to join Nato is not realistic given their demand of a guarantee that no nuclear armed vessels would enter Scotland’s waters.
“There is no mention of what arrangements would be put in place for existing veterans’ pensions and there are a series of assumptions about what equipment they think the UK will simply hand over.”
A source close to UK Government Defence Secretary Philip Hammond branded the SNP’s defence plans “incoherent”, questioning whether they could be funded by a £2.5billion budget and reiterating that negotiations would be required with the rest of the UK.