Fresh concerns have been raised about Britain's Clyde-based nuclear deterrent after Ministry of Defence documents said spending cuts threatened public safety.

A report by the Defence Nuclear Environment Safety Board, the MoD's internal watchdog, said cutting resources or qualified staff could increase the risk to the public and the environment.

The document, released under freedom of information legislation and published in the Sunday Post newspaper, said: "It will become increasingly difficult to maintain that the defence nuclear programmes are being managed with due regard for the protection of the workforce, the public and the environment.

"The principal threats to safety in the defence nuclear programmes in the medium term are the adequacy of resources, both money and staff complement, and the maintenance of a sustainable cadre of suitably competent staff (RN, MoD civilians and in industry partners)."

SNP Westminster leader Angus Robertson said the report raised "serious concerns" over safety at the Faslane naval base on the Clyde, home of the UK's nuclear weapons.

He said: "The fact that nuclear safety appears to be being compromised because of a lack of resources is a deeply worrying development.

"There have been repeated warnings of safety problems due to a lack of investment.

"With the UK's nuclear weapons based on the Clyde, it is absolutely vital that UK ministers and defence chiefs heed this warning by taking action to make sure that no one in Scotland is put at risk."

Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy, Labour MP for East Renfrewshire, said: "People will be extremely concerned that the MoD itself is warning that Government defence cuts are putting nuclear safety in jeopardy.

"In the interests of national security, public safety and environmental protection it is vital that ministers give guarantees that security at nuclear bases is in no way being compromised.

"Risk to public safety is an unacceptable price to pay for this Government's decision to cut the deficit too far and too fast."