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Hundreds of protesters have formed a "peace chain" at the Faslane submarine base - to mark the 40th anniversary of nuclear missiles being based there. About 500 campaigners assembled at Faslane Peace Camp on the Clyde before hearing deliveries from SNP, Labour and Green MSPs.

A huge crane poses the biggest risk of a nuclear disaster at the Faslane naval base on the Clyde, according to newly released safety assessments by the Ministry of Defence. Plutonium from up to 48 nuclear warheads could escape and cause widespread contamination and cancers if there was an accident while a Trident submarine was being moved by the crane - known as a shiplift' - the reports say. But the MoD has been accused by experts and anti-nuclear campaigners of playing down the real dangers. The amounts and risks of the radioactivity that could be released have been underestimated, they say. The shiplift at Faslane is a unique facility with a chequered history. Set up in 1993, it uses nearly 100 winches to hoist the 16,000-tonne Vanguard-class submarines into the air for maintenance while they remain loaded with up to 48 Trident nuclear warheads. The shiplift had to be modified in 1997, and in 2003 a report by consultants suggested accident risks had been underestimated. Regarded by some as Faslane's most hazardous operation, there have been hints it may end up being replaced by the kind of dry dock used elsewhere.

"The Ministry of Defence is struggling to deal with hundreds of safety blunders, pollution leaks and environmental lapses at nuclear weapons bases on the Firth of Clyde. Official reports obtained by the Sunday Herald reveal that Faslane and Coulport have been plagued by nuclear accidents, radioactive contamination and fires over the last two years. Worryingly, there have been unspecified "shortfalls" in the safe management of nuclear bombs. And rules meant to protect people against asbestos and even Legionnaires' disease have been frequently broken."

Defence Secretary John Hutton said he was committed to keeping nuclear weapons in Scotland during his first visit to Faslane in his new post. Mr Hutton said the naval base on the Clyde, which is home to the Trident nuclear submarine fleet, was a "vital part of our country's defence." First Minister Alex Salmond wants to rid Scotland of nuclear weapons.

An MP has called for an investigation after it emerged that the Faslane naval base has suffered a series of safety breaches including radioactive leaks. A report, issued under the Freedom of Information Act, showed radioactive coolant leaked from nuclear submarines on three occasions. The Scottish National Party's Angus Robertson called the disclosures "utterly damning". The base on the Clyde is home to Britain's Trident nuclear missiles.

Britain's nuclear submarine fleet has been hit by a series of serious safety breaches involving repeated leaks of radioactive waste, broken pipes and waste tanks at its home base in Scotland, according to a confidential report. The 400-page internal report, released under the Freedom of Information Act, admits a catalogue of safety failures at Faslane naval base, the home of Britain's Trident nuclear deterrent, saying they were a "recurring theme" and ingrained in the base's culture. The worst breaches include three leaks of radioactive coolant from nuclear submarines in 2004, 2007 and 2008 into the Firth of Clyde on the west coast of Scotland. Two radioactive waste tanks were found to be a "significant" and "growing" radiation hazard and needed to be taken out of service. The revelations in the report, obtained by Channel Four News, are so serious that it has led to the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) warning that it would consider closing the base down if it had the legal powers to do so. Britain's Ministry of Defence is legally exempt from the civil radioactive safety regulations, but Sepa said it was pressing for powers to inspect and control Faslane's nuclear operations.

"THE Ministry of Defence should come clean once and for all about whether or not it plans to use the base at Machrihanish to store radioactive waste from old submarines. Alan Reid MP for Argyll and Bute has vowed to campaign to stop the waste ending up at Machrihanish or any of three other sites in Argyll and Bute and he has called on the MoD to go public. Defence Minister Quentin Davies MP has refused to reveal the sites on the secret list but has said Argyll and Bute is one of four regions being considered, along with Devon, Fife and Berkshire. 'This would appear to narrow the shortlist of sites in Argyll and Bute down to Coulport, Faslane, Glen Douglas and Machrihanish,' said Mr Reid, 'and I am disappointed that the Government is still refusing to publish its shortlist. The secrecy will only lead to speculation.' He added that all four in Argyll were unsuitable for the job."

"Two British nuclear submarines went to sea with a potentially disastrous safety problem that left both vessels at risk of a catastrophic accident, the Guardian can reveal. Safety valves designed to release pressure from steam generators in an emergency were completely sealed off when the nuclear hunter killers Turbulent and Tireless left port, a leaked memo discloses. The problem went undetected on HMS Turbulent for more than two years, during which time the vessel was on operations around the Atlantic, and visited Bergen in Norway, the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, and Faslane naval base near Glasgow."