Ukraine

Baroness Goudie Excerpts

Friday 31st October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Goudie (Lab)]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Barrow, welcome him to this House and thank him for the work that he has done and will continue to do for the people of Ukraine. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Coaker, for bringing this important debate to the House.

After more than three and a half years of full-scale war in Ukraine, the human cost remains staggering. According to the UN, more than 10,000 civilians have been killed and 20,000 injured since Russia’s invasion in 2022. Around 6.5 million Ukrainians remain displaced abroad, 90% of whom are women and children; and 3.6 million are internally displaced, 59% of whom are women. Behind those numbers are families, homes and futures interrupted, and, for many women, lives marked by violence and loss that cannot be spoken aloud.

As many colleagues know, I have worked for decades on the women, peace and security agenda. I will therefore focus my remarks on the gendered impact of this war, the importance of accountability and the practical steps that the UK can take to ensure justice and recovery for survivors.

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, where I serve as a global ambassador and adviser, continues to document these realities through its conflict tracker for Ukraine. Its data shows that, since 2022, there has been a sharp escalation of conflict-related sexual violence, particularly in occupied areas. Survivors have described systematic abuse used to terrorise communities, yet prosecutions remain painfully rare.

The institute’s research also finds that, despite this suffering, Ukrainian women are not only victims but leaders in humanitarian response, local peacebuilding and governance. Women’s organisations, despite their critical front-line role, receive less than 1% of international aid—a gap now widened by US foreign aid cuts. They are organising shelter, food, trauma care and documentation of war crimes. Many have also joined the armed forces, with 100,000 now recorded within Ukraine’s military personnel, including a large number on the front line. Those women are redefining what resilience under fire looks like. But, as Georgetown reminds us, inclusion must extend beyond courage; it must shape peace. Women must have a seat at the table in all reconciliation, reconstruction and accountability processes. Without their voices, recovery will be incomplete.

Justice, too, cannot wait. Here I wish to raise three practical issues that deserve scrutiny. The first is the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club, which many of my colleagues have mentioned and which we debated recently. The interest accrued on those frozen funds as well as any associated tax revenue should be directed to survivors of human rights violations caused by this war. It would be inappropriate for those revenues to flow into the Treasury’s general budget when they are morally and publicly earmarked for the victims of aggression. I hope the Minister will update the House on whether that interest is being held, reinvested or applied towards reparations.

Secondly, I wish to ask about the £800,000 seized from the Russian oligarch, Petr Aven, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. These funds currently sit in a holding account while the department decides their destination. Directing them towards reparation for survivors would send a strong signal that the assets of such individuals will not rest comfortably in limbo but be used to repair harm and help the cause.

Thirdly, I would welcome progress on establishing an international claims commission for Ukraine under the Council of Europe. That mechanism could become a cornerstone of accountability if it is survivor-centred, inclusive and adequately resourced. I ask the Government to confirm what steps the United Kingdom is taking to encourage other states to sign and ratify the convention; whether we plan to contribute technical or financial support; and how we will ensure that the commission covers violations dating back to 2014, as survivors and civil society have requested. From my conversations with Ukrainian women leaders, their message is clear: justice must not begin in 2022; the trauma of Crimea and the Donbass cannot be erased.

As we debate sanctions and mechanisms, we must remember the missing children, whom many of my colleagues have mentioned, and that behind every policy are survivors—women searching for their missing husbands, children uprooted by occupation and grandmothers holding together entire families.

The World Bank now estimates Ukraine’s reconstruction costs at over $486 billion, a figure based on a joint assessment of damage up to December 2023, yet rebuilding infrastructure alone will not restore what has been lost. Rebuilding trust, safety and justice are absolutely important.

I also wish to acknowledge the remarkable role of Ukraine’s civil society, often led by women’s organisations such as La Strada Ukraine, which provides support for survivors of sexual violence and trafficking, which is still happening despite the war. Those organisations continue to operate under shellfire, often without funding, while ensuring that evidence reaches international investigators.

The UK has a proud history of championing the women, peace and security agenda, beginning with our own national action plan and the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative. We must now ensure that those commitments are more than words on paper; that means sustained funding for survivor-centred justice and constant diplomatic pressure for accountability.