Outside References
Elements of the story parody the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the actions of the then-Prime Minister Tony Blair. This includes a pre-emptive strike based on information of the presence of "massive weapons of destruction" which could be deployed in 45 seconds, as opposed to Blair's "weapons of mass destruction" that could be deployed in "45 minutes".
The use of vinegar on calcium "just like Hannibal" references the story of how Hannibal's engineers, while crossing the Alps, heated boulders that blocked their way with wood fires, then poured vinegar over them. The rocks, weakened by the heat, were broken up by the vinegar into smaller pieces, which were then easily moved to clear a path. When Sip Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen, the Slitheen disguised as Police Commissioner Strickland, appears outside Mickey's flat, the word "Salford" appears as graffiti on the wall near the elevator. Salford is Christopher Eccleston's hometown.
Read more about this topic: World War Three (Doctor Who)