Ukraine

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff Excerpts

Wednesday 30th March 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)]

My Lords, at the moment this is speculation. It was clear that Mr Abramovich has a close relationship with Putin, and the fact that he was sanctioned was the right thing to do.

[Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (CB)]

My Lords, today I had a response from the Home Office that it did not know how many people had come into the UK with visas on the Homes for Ukraine scheme. Can the Government translate that website into Ukrainian so that it is more user-friendly? I have sent a list of suggested improvements to the relevant Minister.

I want to ask also about humanitarian aid. Of the 44 cancer centres in Ukraine, only eight now remain. Patients are being moved into Poland. Lithuania and Moldova’s health facilities are at capacity. In the humanitarian aid that we are providing, is there pain relief, and are there anaesthetic agents, surgical supplies and antibiotics going into Ukraine and neighbouring countries, including anti-cancer drugs to those adjacent cancer centres? Do we recognise that many of the medical staff within Ukraine have been killed or injured and therefore that their numbers are seriously depleted? Are we supporting those agencies from the UK which are providing rapid online support to trauma surgeons within Ukraine?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)]

My Lords, on the final question, the short answer is yes. We are working very closely with our colleagues in the Department of Health regarding the requirements in Ukraine and neighbouring countries. To be very open, I asked what the specific needs were for Poland in terms of beds, medicines, et cetera. As the noble Baroness will be aware, we have delivered a sizeable amount of humanitarian and medical support to near-neighbouring countries. I do not want to paint a false impression; undoubtedly, the challenge remains getting into Ukraine in a safe and secure way, as I have indicated already. On the issue of cancer patients, the noble Baroness will be aware that the United Kingdom itself evacuated 21 paediatric oncology patients from Warsaw for treatment by the NHS in the UK and will continue to work very closely with Poland and other partners to ensure that those who need urgent treatment, either in country or in the UK, will be facilitated.