Ukraine: Forcible Removal of Children

Debate between Baroness Chapman of Darlington and Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe

Monday 24th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I cannot imagine that that would be the case. I know that the noble Lord has a personal close interest in this, and I understand completely why he is pushing me on it, but I am not going to get into what we would or would not do and what other people may or may not accept as an outcome. I am happy to say again that I think the return of these children is not something on which anybody wishes to compromise.

[Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe (Lab)]

My Lords, will the Minister, recognising how sensitive it is at the moment to ask questions, say something about where we are with a coalition of the willing? Given that periodically the USA indicates that it will not allow NATO to go in certain directions, there is a case for the coalition of the willing to be around and even to be able to deal with other issues that might come along. Given that we have so many younger people unemployed, could we conceivably try to make a link between the two?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I am not sure that I understand the very last point that my noble friend made about young people being unemployed, but on the coalition of the willing, that has proved useful and will continue to be vital as we move this forward because the discussions that are taking place at the moment are between the USA and Ukraine, but it is vital, for this to be lasting, that there is a broad network of support around whatever is agreed and, as I say, that must be agreed primarily by the Ukrainian leadership and actually by the people of Ukraine.

Ukraine War: London Talks

Debate between Baroness Chapman of Darlington and Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe

Monday 28th April 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

It is for the people of Ukraine to determine their own future. That has been the bedrock of the position of this Government from the very beginning, and I do not see that changing.

[Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe (Lab)]

My Lords, while it is understandable that the Minister cannot say too much about the coalition of the willing, one thing is very clear: we will need feet on the ground in due course for peace in Ukraine. Might we start giving some thought to how we can raise the additional resources that will be needed there, and how we approach this? Maybe we should be talking about a peace corps and peace groups, rather than talking in old war terms; that might attract more people into the forces.

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I remind noble Lords of the announcement that was made some weeks ago now about increasing defence spending—at the expense of my own overseas development budget. We are putting the additional resources into defence, and I think it right that we do that at this time, because we need to stand ready to do what we need to do to support Ukraine. Clearly, that is not just about people; it is about technology, cybersecurity, securing undersea cables and so on. A modern defence offer looks very different from how it may have looked in the past, but my noble friend is right to remind us that this is a long-standing commitment: we have just recently agreed a 100-year partnership with Ukraine.

Ukraine: Frozen Russian Assets

Debate between Baroness Chapman of Darlington and Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe

Wednesday 26th February 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

In a sense, that is already what is happening because the interest on the assets is being used to repay the loan that has been made. We are contributing around £2.6 billion to that, alongside partners in the EU, United States, Canada and Japan. That is the right thing to do, and I know his party supports it. I take the opportunity again, as we did last night, to thank the Opposition for their unwavering support for the Government in our approach to Ukraine, just as we supported his Government since the beginning of this conflict.

[Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe (Lab)]

My Lords, many of the frozen assets are properties, and many of those properties are empty. I look across the Thames and see a great building where Abramovich had four floors. Will the Government explore the possibility of using those empty buildings, in particular for Ukrainians and immigration?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

That is an interesting idea; it is the first time I have heard that suggestion. I will take it back and ask that it be explored by officials. It is important, though, that whatever we do is legally sound and is done collaboratively with our partners and allies. Whatever we do, we have to be acting within the law, because part of our argument against what Russia has done is that it was a breach of international law. We take our obligations very seriously, and we want to make sure that whatever we do, alongside our partners and allies, is legally sound.