War in Gaza

Andrew Western Excerpts

Tuesday 7th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The position on arms sales and legal advice is clear, as the right hon. Gentleman will be aware. He knows that we always follow carefully the legal advice, although we do not publish it, and we always act in accordance with it. He will also know that, in the light of that legal advice, as the Foreign Secretary announced on 9 April, the UK position with regard to export licences remains unchanged.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

Gaza is bleeding and Gaza is starving. At least 34,700 people are dead, the majority of them women and children, while a man-made famine continues to take hold. How much further do things need to escalate before this Government finally take action, restore UNRWA funding and—finally—call for an immediate ceasefire?

Israel and Gaza

Andrew Western Excerpts

Tuesday 19th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The right hon. Gentleman makes a very good point. While Israel uses its military forces to defend its civilian population, Hamas use their civilian population to defend Hamas.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

Last week’s comments from the Israeli ambassador, which effectively ruled out a two-state solution, serve as further evidence of the difference that exists between our aspirations for the region and those of both the Israeli Government and, of course, Hamas. Given the chasm that exists between those conflicting objectives, is it not time to urgently press for a permanent ceasefire to enable the diplomatic measures necessary to bring about consensus on a lasting peace?

[Mr Mitchell]

In respect of the comments made by the Israeli ambassador to the UK, the hon. Gentleman will have seen the response of the British Government and, in particular, the response of the Foreign Secretary. On the second part of the hon. Gentleman’s question in respect of a permanent ceasefire, he will have heard not only what the Government have said, but what those on the Opposition Front Bench have said.

Trial of Jimmy Lai

Andrew Western Excerpts

Monday 18th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right. The tools that we have at our disposal here in the mother of Parliaments, which allow for freedom of speech and expression, are incredibly important. As a Minister who spends a lot of her time on the other side of the world in countries large and small, I am very conscious that the messaging from this Parliament is heard loud and clear in every other country. We perhaps forget just how important our voice is in standing up for the values that we believe in.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

Mr Lai’s detention is a shocking symbol of the erosion not just of human rights but of freedom of expression in Hong Kong. Given everything that we are seeing unfolding, what steps is the Minister taking to ensure that we are supportive of what remains of a free press in Hong Kong?

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

Jimmy Lai has been an extraordinary champion of free speech, which he chose to continue, despite the changing landscape in Hong Kong. We continue to support people across the piece, many of whom have come to the UK for sanctuary, to be able to be able to speak out and use our freedom of press to share their concerns and highlight the abuses they are seeing.

Israel and Palestine

Andrew Western Excerpts

Monday 11th December 2023 Westminster Hall

[Cat Smith]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention and I share the feelings that he has just expressed. In fact, he pre-empts the contribution that I was about to make, which is that the temporary ceasefire last week was a brief respite for the 1.8 million people displaced in Gaza, and therefore it was that opportunity for aid provision to come in and for the release of hostages. However, unless there is a permanent ceasefire, we will never find a permanent peace.

There is no doubt that it was incredibly moving to see the videos of families being reunited, and it is impossible to imagine the fear and the worry of the families of those who remain hostages. However, as Israel continues to seek to destroy the terrorists Hamas, the fear and threat of injury and death continue. The temporary ceasefire was merely a brief respite and as the conflict continues, the needs of the displaced and injured people in Gaza are increasing. We need to address that through aid and through diplomacy.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

On that point about moving past the temporary truce, we are now 10 days on from that and it occurs to me—I wonder whether my hon. Friend concurs—that there is no clear strategy from Government as to how we, as the UK, can help to prevent the suffering of innocent Palestinian civilians and end the violence we are all witnessing. To that end, does she share my hope that when the Minister responds to the debate, he will set out exactly what the Government are doing with international partners now to break what seems to have become a diplomatic stalemate following the truce, and bring about the permanent ceasefire that is surely the only way to bring this devastating situation to an end?

[Cat Smith]

I share the—

Libya Floods

Andrew Western Excerpts

Thursday 14th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[David Rutley]

I know that my hon. Friend has a real interest in the history and heritage of north Africa. Clearly, any damage to a UNESCO world heritage site would be a cause of great concern. Right now, as Members on both sides of the House have said, our focus has to be on what we can do to help preserve life and also to protect British nationals. None the less, we will work with partners through UNESCO on the matters that he has raised.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

This is a devastating tragedy, and it has unquestionably been exacerbated by Libya’s poor warning and evacuation systems, and by its substandard planning and design standards. I welcome the financial support that the Minister has outlined, but can he assure me that we will also look to provide whatever technical expertise is necessary to bring about improvements in these areas for the rebuilding of Libya both now and into the future?

[David Rutley]

The hon. Member makes a really important point about the medium term, and we will certainly examine what technical support we can provide. That will be important given the infrastructure issues. I also gently urge all parties in Libya to recognise that this is about prioritisation. If they can move away from conflict and think about how they can work in the interests of their own populations, that would also help the situation. We stand ready to help, but once we get through this immediate humanitarian crisis, other parties will need to work out how they can help move the country forward.

Repurposing Russian Assets to Rebuild Ukraine

Andrew Western Excerpts

Tuesday 27th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

It is not possible to calculate the true cost of Putin’s barbaric attack on Ukraine—the misery caused by the death, destruction, and despair he has inflicted cannot be quantified—but there are some costs that we are able to calculate, enormous though they are. We know that the illegal invasion has caused approximately $137.8 billion of damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure, and we know that approximately $50 billion-worth of damage has been inflicted on Ukraine’s housing stock and that its agricultural sector, which is vital to countries beyond Ukraine, has seen a hit of $9 billion.

Behind each of these statistics are of course people—people who must pick up the pieces of this carnage. It is essential that we provide them with every possible means of support to do that. So I am pleased that the Opposition have secured a debate today to push forward a vital way in which we can fund this support. For it is not enough to fully stand behind Ukraine’s resistance to Putin; we must also be fully behind Ukraine’s recovery after, as I hope, this awful war has ended and Putin has been defeated. I fully back today’s motion, which is consistent with the unwavering support we have shown for Ukraine in the last year.

As we have heard today, the cost of rebuilding Ukraine is estimated to be around $400 billion, equivalent in scale to the Marshall plan that helped rebuild Europe after the horrors of world war two. We must pull every lever at our disposal to help meet that cost. One such lever is the repurposing of seized Russian assets. From the very beginning of Putin’s invasion, Labour has called on the Government to do that. In that time, conservative estimates state that the UK has seized more than £18 billion and possibly, as we have heard today, up to £26 billion in Russian-owned assets, and I commend that effort. I also commend the Government announcement last week that Russian sanctions will remain until compensation is paid to Ukraine. However, we must go further and faster. There are vast numbers of Russian assets in this country, often acquired through the corruption of the Russian state. It is morally and politically right to re-purpose them.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

I commend my hon. Friend on making an excellent speech. Does he agree that Canada is showing exceptional leadership in how it is dealing with the seizing of ill-gotten Russian assets gained from Ukraine?

[Andrew Western]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, and I will give some other examples later on of other institutions and nations that are also leading the way in that regard. For all that there is unity across the House in our support for Ukraine, the Government have not made enough progress on overcoming the obstacles that stand in the way of repurposing Russian state assets. Indeed, we had a debate in this place on these issues back in March, when my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff South and Penarth (Stephen Doughty) set out a timeline of Government commitments: Ministers had said on five occasions between July of last year and February this year that they were considering all options on using seized Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine. We are a year on now from those first commitments on repurposing assets, and it is not clear that we are any further forward.

I urge the Government to take inspiration from what is happening not just in Canada but in the US, where legislation has been introduced in the Senate and the House of Representatives that would give the US President the authority to confiscate Russian assets frozen in the United States and transfer them to help Ukraine. The European Commission President has said that the EU bloc will put forward a proposal before the summer break on how the proceeds from the more than €200 billion belonging to the Central Bank of Russia frozen in the EU will be used to be pay for Ukrainian reconstruction. That is the level of urgency we need. I hope that when the Minister rises to wind up, they can let the House know what conversations the Government have had on the feasibility of replicating measures taken by our allies in the US and the EU.

We are all agreed on the importance of maintaining western unity in support for Ukraine, and part of that must not be falling behind our allies in the efforts to make Putin take financial responsibility for the damage he has done. The unity that exists in this House to support Ukraine is vital, but as part of that united effort, we must be able to press Ministers to go further and faster when it is needed. That is what today’s motion is about. I know that it is difficult, but Ukraine has no time to wait. We must see a concrete plan soon. The Government will have support from across the House in drawing it up and implementing it.

Oral Answers to Questions

Andrew Western Excerpts

Tuesday 14th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)]

2. What progress his Department has made in helping to ensure that girls around the world have access to 12 years of quality education.

[Andrew Western (Stretford and Urmston) (Lab)]

7. What steps he is taking to help ensure that girls receive a quality education throughout the world.

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Mr Andrew Mitchell)]

Ensuring 12 years of quality education for all girls is a British Government priority. We run bilateral education programmes in 19 countries, and our girls’ education challenge programme is supporting 1.6 million girls to secure a quality education.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Lady is entirely right; those two specific targets were a major priority for the UK G7 presidency in 2021. Prioritising foundational learning—reading, writing and counting well—is at the heart of that. We are on track to achieve both targets by the date agreed at the G7.

[Andrew Western]

Since the fall of Kabul, some 850,000 girls have been prevented from attending school by the Taliban. Recently, pupils at St Matthew’s C of E Primary School in Stretford undertook a whole-school march in solidarity with the plight of Afghan girls denied an education. They have done all they can to raise awareness of this important issue. What more does the Minister believe his Government can do to raise awareness of this ongoing travesty? Crucially, will he agree to bring forward a comprehensive Afghanistan strategy that takes into account the ongoing crackdown on the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan?

[Mr Mitchell]

I congratulate the school in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency on that public-spirited statement about the rights of women and the appalling violations that are taking place in Afghanistan. The Taliban are not a monolith in Afghanistan; there are parts of the country in which education is taking place at both a primary and a secondary level for girls. It is the job of the international community to try to persuade and argue with the Taliban Administration that what is happening in those areas should be extended across the whole country.