GCOMS-UK is the British branch of the Global Campaign on Military Spending, launched by the International Peace Bureau in 2014. Activities in the UK in fact began in 2011, the year that the IPB began its Global Days of Action on Military Spending, an annual event that later grew into the year-round, permanent campaign.
GCOMS-UK is a coalition of non-governmental organisations working at local, regional and national level on a wide range of related issues. It is coordinated by a Steering Group drawn from the Supporting Organisations. We have a part-time Coordinator helping knit together the diverse efforts of the coalition members. We gratefully acknowledge support for this position from the Lansbury House Trust Fund.
Mission Statement
We come together, as people concerned with peace, social justice, healthcare and environmental justice, to call for a new approach to our common security that will tackle the real problems of our world; an approach which addresses the root causes of conflict, including environmental problems, healthcare, inequality and access to resources. Military responses, with their real and hidden costs, do not help; they threaten human security.
We call for:
- Military spending to be shifted towards health, social and environmental needs. These needs should take priority over aircraft carriers, long range strike aircraft, armed drones, weapons exports and weapons of mass destruction.
- No replacement of the UK’s nuclear weapons system, Trident. Redirecting its cost alone could enable appropriate funding for public services in the UK, such as health and education.
- New thinking involving civil society and government to create a clear programme of action for spending, research and investment to build sustainable, common security at national and international levels.
- The huge subsidy to the arms industry to be redirected towards renewable energy and energy-saving measures, allowing diversification and conversion of the arms industry, and enabling our public resources to tackle a huge cause of human insecurity, climate change.
- Grassroots groups, networks, and organisations to work together across their ‘issue’ boundaries, to share experiences and expertise that will inspire others to work for a common security.
Actions organised within the framework of GCOMS-UK take place throughout the year, but with a particular focus on the GDAMS season (April-May) and periods around government budget announcements. They have included a wide range of activities such as street protests/vigils, web/seminars, statements, media interviews, workshops, stalls, leafletting, petitions, letters to press and MPs, videos, photo-opps and selfie campaigns.
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