ANTI-WAR campaigners hit back today at Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey’s calls for Britain to build its own nuclear deterrent, warning his plans were “a disaster” that would provoke further wars.

Peace activists slammed the proposals saying the hundreds of billions needed to build such an arsenal would mean deep cuts to public services and would “drive up poverty and social deprivation.”

Sir Ed’s comments come amid renewed scrutiny over the so-called special relationship with the US as Britain risks being dragged further into the war in the Middle East.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said today that the government was considering sending ships and mine-hunting drones to ensure the Strait of Hormuz stays open to commercial trade, after Iran said it would continue blocking the waterway.

He told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “It is very important that we get the Strait of Hormuz reopened. And we have already been talking with our allies, including the US, about this.

“There are different ways that we could contribute, including with mine-hunting drones. All of these things are being looked at in concert with our allies … Any options that can help to get the strait reopened are being looked at.”

Britain’s possible deployment of warships in the region follows a sharp increase in oil prices since the strait’s effective closure at the start of the war, pushing prices from from $65 a barrel to about $100 (£75).

About 20 per cent of the world’s oil supply transits through the Strait of Hormuz.

The crisis over the rising cost has even pushed the government to consider halting plans to raise fuel duty for the first time in more than a decade if the war continues.

Mr Miliband said of the rise that “we will have to see where we are” and that the government will “stand by the British people in this crisis.”

Speaking at the Liberal Democrat spring conference in York, Sir Ed argued that Britain should stop relying on the US and manufacture and maintain its nuclear arms itself.

Acknowledging the move would cost billions, he said: “While Trump is in charge, we certainly cannot rely on America as a dependable ally in the way we used to.

“And we can no longer bet our nation’s security on the hope that the US won’t produce new versions of Trump in the future.

“So the real question is not whether we should build a sovereign British nuclear deterrent. The question is what happens if we don’t.”

Referring to the important US involvement in Britain’s Trident nuclear programme, he said: “Our deterrent is not truly independent.”

He added that Britain should not be at “Donald Trump’s beck and call” over Iran and called for de-escalation in the Strait of Hormuz rather than increasing British military involvement.

Sir Ed said the government “should be very careful about being dragged into a war that we didn’t start and is damaging our country and our economy.”

“At the moment, I can’t see a reason that we should go.”

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament general secretary Sophie Bolt slammed the Lib Dem leader for his plans which she called “a disaster.”

She told the Morning Star: “The cost alone would mean hundreds of billions in cuts to public services — driving up poverty and social deprivation. It would mean slashing Britain’s already paltry investment in climate action and overseas development.

“Real independence from the US administration means reversing the huge increases in military spending that are paying for Trump’s wars.

“It means adopting a foreign policy that respects and abides by international law, including the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, so disarming Britain’s nuclear weapons, not building new ones.

“And it means ending Britain’s membership of the US-led nuclear alliance of Nato, thus freeing Britain from hosting US bases and US nuclear weapons.”

Mr Miliband confirmed that ministers were in talks with allies concerning British involvement in the Strait of Hormuz following the US President Donald Trump’s request for Britain and other countries to deploy warships to the region.

Peace Pledge Union project manager Geoff Tibbs said: “Politicians are in a race to the bottom, in their constant military posturing.”

He told the Star: “With global military tensions mounting, Ed Davey’s call to throw more money into an independent UK nuclear arsenal is frankly dangerous.

“Nuclear weapons and escalating militarism don’t make anyone safer. Rather than deter conflict — including the unsurvivable eventuality of nuclear war — they provoke it.

“Instead of championing the spiralling global arms race, UK politicians should show real leadership by pushing for peace-building and disarmament now.”

HMS Dragon left for Cyprus on Tuesday, where it will join British forces at the RAF base at Akrotiri. The navy no longer has mine-hunting ships in the Middle East, as the last one left Bahrain only days before the start of the conflict.

Government officials said no official decision has been made concerning blocking plans for a fuel duty rise.