'Secret' deal over Star Wars

The Conservatives have accused the government of secretly supporting the US "Son of Star Wars" missile defence programme.

But ministers were too "scared stiff" of opposition from Labour backbenchers and European partners to admit it in public, according to shadow defence secretary Iain Duncan Smith.

President Bush fears attack by rogue states

Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon insisted the government had a "wholly consistent and straightforward" policy.

During the Commons debate, ministers came under criticism from their own benches - 100 Labour MPs have already signed a motion demanding that the USA scrap the missile defence programme.

Accusing the government of being in "a complete mess" on the issue, Mr Duncan Smith said: "They are not sitting on the fence any longer, they are impaled on the fence."

Vigorous debate

Mr Hoon said that until the Bush administration came up with a specific proposal it would be wrong to make a decision on whether or not to support it.

There was a "vigorous debate" taking place in Europe and the US but the opposition had already played their hand, he said.

"They are telling the United States what sort of system they believe the United States should deploy."

Labour's Tony Lloyd, whose Early Day Motion expressing concern at the US's apparent intention to abandon the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with Russia in favour of the defence shield against rogue states was signed by more than 100 Labour backbenchers, warned about the risks of uncertainty.

Hair-trigger alert

The Manchester Central MP said: "If the Americans were to abrogate the ABM treaty, if Russia then were to step back and put their own missiles for example onto hair-trigger alert, this very uncertain long-term technology would simply not be worth the massive increase in insecurity in Europe."

Mr Hoon faced claims from anti-nuclear Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn (Islington N) that the US plans would "fundamentally undermine the whole nuclear disarmament process".

The defence secretary responded by accusing him of "harking back to bygone days".

The defence secretary was also asked to deal sensitively with the issue of tightening security at the military base recently "invaded" by protesters.

Dozens of Greenpeace supporters, some dressed as missiles, infiltrated the Menwith Hill listening station in North Yorkshire last week, exposing almost non-existent security at what is supposed to be a high-security spy base.

'Prison camp'

Tory David Curry, whose Skipton and Ripon constituency contains the base said he wanted to improve security but did not want the base, which is part of the local community, to be turned into a "prison camp".

Mr Hoon accepted that present security was "far from satisfactory" and said the review would acknowledge the need of people living at the base do so in "tolerable circumstances".

Later, Mr Duncan Smith accused Mr Hoon of operating a "pushmepullyou" policy towards Nato's European Defence Force.

Mr Duncan Smith said it was not clear how operational decisions were in relation to the force.

Mr Hoon replied that operational planning would be conducted through Nato.

He added: "I would have it thought it would be rather dangerous for you to make references to Dr Doolittle."