Most of the foreign exchange costs of Britain's Polaris submarine programiie is due to be paid during the next two years - a massive drain of over £150 million in dollar currency. This, of course, is in addition to the &250 million which make up the sterling share of the programme. Two additional factors have recently come to light. Firstly, the research and development costs of the warheads which are to be fitted to the missiles: such charges are normally disguised in Government accounts by appearing under some blanket heading such as "Headquarters Costs", which can be used to conceal the true expenditure on fissile material, The second factor, which appears to have been appreciated, or at least announced, at an astonishingly late date, is the need for a comunications satellite in order to maintain operational contact with the four submarines. Quite apart from the dollar outflow, the escalating costs of this reckless project are a strange example of Mr, Gunter's virtue of thrift.
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