Gibraltar could be the new home of Britain 's nuclear submarines if the SNP succeeds in ridding Scotland of Trident . Moving the nation 's nuclear deterrent to the British territory could cost £3billion and take 10 years to complete , it was reported . The SNP want to eject Trident from Scotland , but both the Conservatives and Labour have committed to retaining the base on the Clyde . Scroll down for video . Gibraltar could be the new home of Britain 's nuclear submarines ( one pictured ) if the SNP succeeds in ridding Scotland of Trident . A senior military source told the Sunday Express that Ministry of Defence officials have sounded out Gibraltar as an alternative to the naval base on the Clyde . ' A party was sent to Gibraltar in January to determine whether the option could work . One can only assume it ’ s part of broader ­contingency planning , ' the source said . The SNP 's deputy leader Stewart Hosie has threatened to hold Westminster to ransom over Trident if the party holds the balance of power after the general election on May 7 . Other options for a new home for the nuclear deterrent include Falmouth , but the potential political fall-out of moving the submarines to the Cornish coast make Gibraltar a more attractive proposal . Dr Nick Ritchie , international security lecturer at the University of York , said any move could anger Spain - who already dispute Britain 's claim over Gibraltar . Moving the nation 's nuclear deterrent to Gibraltar ( pictured ) could cost £3billion and take 10 years to complete , it was reported . He said : 'If the MoD is exploring other options , it shows admirable planning and foresight . Choosing Gibraltar would avoid the nimbyism question . Any alter­native site in England or Wales would carry political down sides . But Gibraltar has enough patriotism to overcome this . 'It would be interesting to see Spain ’ s reaction , ­however , since it is a non-nuclear member of Nato . ' Gibraltar 's Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said it had the facilities available and had been visited by submarines from the UK and the US in the past . However , a spokesman for the MoD said : 'This is absolutely untrue and we can be very clear that the MOD is not planning to move the nuclear deterrent from HM Naval Base Clyde to Gibraltar , or anywhere else . 'The MOD is fully committed to retaining the deterrent on the Clyde and indeed we are basing all our submarines there from 2020. ” . The likelihood of any move is likely to be increased by a strong performance by the SNP in the election . The SNP want to eject Trident ( submarine pictured ) from Scotland , but both the Conservatives and Labour have committed to retaining the base on the Clyde . Ed Miliband has ruled out a formal coalition with Nicola Sturgeon 's party , as well as a confidence-and-supply agreement which would see the SNP back Labour on crucial votes , such as the Budget or the Queen 's Speech . He told Andrew Marr today : 'No coalition , no tie-ins , I have said no deals - I have been clear about that . I am not doing deals with the Scottish Nationalist Party . ' The Conservatives have made the prospect of a Labour administration that 's reliant on SNP votes one of the central planks of their election campaign in the last fortnight . Last week a Labour frontbencher expressed regret that the party can not ‘ get rid ’ of Trident . Shadow Welsh secretary Owen Smith said at a hustings event on Wednesday : ‘ We view the world as being a very dangerous and volatile place at the moment . So our policy is that we will retain Trident , we will maintain a continuous at-sea deterrent. ’ But he added : ‘ So we will pursue an independent perspective , the next Labour government , but on the issue of Trident : would but we could get rid of it but I fear that we can ’ t . ’
Trident nuclear deterrent could be moved to Gibraltar , according to reports . SNP want to eject Trident from its current base on the Clyde in Spain . Military source says the MoD have sounded out Gibraltar as an alternative . Nuclear submarines ' move could cost £3billion and take 10 years .