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C
D
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تا
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COSL
5.
Only the very broadest cutimate of costs in possible at this stage (paragraph 12). They could be above 120 million for 10 stations although favourable cost sharing arrangements could reduce this considerably. American help in cash or kind is also possible, although Mr Jay has strongly recommended against an early high level request.
7.
The choice of the government department to pay UK costs has been the subject of considerable discussion at official level. In accordance with the Secretary of State's instructions, FCO officials have argued that the costs should be met by the MOD, notably from savings on their nuclear test programme.
MÓD officials assert that these savings would be more than offset by the cost of other programmes designed to maintain the safety and reliability of the stockpile. This does not seen convincing and
I suggest that the Secretary of State should press for the point to be fully explained when Ministers meet. Dr. Owen, might also argue that:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(a)
the Chancellor of the Exchequer said in
March that the (much smaller) costs then foreseen
should be met from within the Defence
Budget. The Defence Secretary accepted
this on the basis of the earlier costs;
the FCO has never borne the costs of
verifying an arms control agreement.
+
(In the US all costs of NSS will be borne by the Departments of Energy and Defence.); the expenditure envisaged is out of all proportion to the size of the relevant FCO Vote (Other External Relations) which in 1979/30 is estimated to be 84.5 million. So we should certainly have to look to the Contingency Reserve for much the greatest part of the money. The MOD has far larger votes from which to find savings to pay for
NSS;
the MOD will have to install and operate NSS.
It would be cumbersome for the FCO to obtain the money from the Contingency Reserve simply
Jin order
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