London: In her first ever parliamentary debate since becoming Britain's new Prime Minister, Theresa May on Monday declared that she would not hesitate to authorise a deadly nuclear strike that has the capacity to kill hundreds of thousands of people, including children.
In a House of Commons vote on Sunday, May replied with a 'Yes' when she was asked if she would approve a nuke strike. “Are you personally prepared to authorise a nuclear strike that can kill a hundred thousand innocent men, women and children?" questioned Scottish National Party’s (SNP) George Kerevan.
“I have to say to the honourable gentleman the whole point of a deterrent is that our enemies need to know that we would be prepared to use it, unlike some suggestions that we could have a deterrent but not actually be willing to use it, which seem to come from the Labour party frontbench,” May was quoted as saying.
Although previous prime ministers have maintained a distance from answering any questions related to nuclear strike, May, without hesitation, said that she would not mind pressing the nuclear button.
According to reports, May's blunt reply comes in the wake of the vote by lawmakers on replacing the ageing submarines that carry Britain's nuclear weapons.
In the House of Common, lawmakers approved the construction of four new submarines to carry the existing Trident missile system and their nuclear warheads, at a cost of £41 billion (49 billion euros, $54 billion).
Theresa May was officially appointed as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on July 14, 2016, becoming the second woman Prime Minister of Britain, after ‘Iron Lady’ Margaret Thatcher.
Three weeks after Britain voted to leave the European Union, May also came under fire from EU leaders, who pressed her to trigger a Brexit as quickly as possible.
