Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Dan Carden and Yvette Cooper

Tuesday 20th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

The UK is working very closely with our partners, through NATO and also more broadly, to ensure that Ukraine has the military support it needs, including weapons and equipment, and support for its energy infrastructure and intelligence gathering, where the UK plays an important role. We have set forward commitments alongside the French Government, and have that forward lean on the ability to support Ukraine if a peace agreement is reached backed by security guarantees. The UK is very much leading the military and wider support for Ukraine.

[Dan Carden (Liverpool Walton) (Lab)]

T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Yvette Cooper)]

In a few weeks’ time, we will reach the fourth anniversary of the Ukraine war. Extreme efforts have been made over recent months to pursue a just and lasting peace, but still we have seen no sign that Russia is willing to make peace. In the early hours of today, Russia attacked Ukraine with 34 missiles and 339 drones. That follows four previous nights in which Russia fired 537 drones at Ukrainian cities, largely targeting energy infrastructure. Ukraine’s energy system is experiencing its most acute crisis of the war, and Kyiv residents are currently receiving three hours of power, followed by 10-hour outages. On 16 January, as we marked the first anniversary of the 100-year partnership, I announced a further £20 million of UK support for vital energy repairs. Our commitment to supporting Ukraine is unwavering.

[Dan Carden]

I am grateful for that update. The brutal Iranian regime is dying and a new Iran is being born. We can assist that process, in the Iranian people’s interests and ours, by banning the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. If the Foreign Secretary requires a new legislative instrument for a proscription mechanism for state and state-linked bodies, will she bring that to the House? Will the Foreign Office prepare for the day after, convening Opposition parties to cohere them and mobilise expertise to decide on a future democratic—

Iran

Debate between Dan Carden and Yvette Cooper

Tuesday 13th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

The fact that the Security Minister has come to sit on the Front Bench for this statement shows how seriously we take the threats here in the UK. The right hon. Member is right to talk about the threats that have been made to Iran International. I know that he will join me in paying tribute to the work of our police, particularly our counter-terrorism police, and our security services for ensuring that people are kept safe. I also pay tribute to the BBC Persian service. It is clearly independent operationally and editorially. One in four Iranians have accessed the BBC Persian service to get the latest news despite it being banned in the country. That shows the impact that independent journalism can have.

[Dan Carden (Liverpool Walton) (Lab)]

Iran is a remarkable country with a rich history and culture. Its people have been living under tyranny for decades. They are now fighting to rid themselves of their chains. Britain is a friend to the Iranian people. Our aim should be to stop the regime massacring its citizens and to set the people of Iran free for a democratic future. These are messages that the people of Iran would welcome. The Republic has declared war on its people. They are being murdered in the dark, and we must be a force for light. Given the internet blackout, what is the Foreign Secretary doing to ensure that the people of Iran can hear her message, and this country’s message, of friendship and support? Some Iranians are talking about the return of Reza Pahlavi. What conversations have the Government had with him?

[Yvette Cooper]

My hon. Friend’s point about the need to restore communications is crucial. It is crucial that we are able to find out the sheer horror of what is happening, and it is crucial for the people of Iran to be able to communicate with each other and to be able to speak out to ensure that their voices are heard. Obviously, the future of Iran is for the Iranian people, but at the moment the regime is not allowing the Iranian people’s voices to be heard. We need to see an Iran that does not repress the rights of women, kill peaceful protesters, aid Russia’s aggression or support lethal threats on the streets of Britain.

Venezuela

Debate between Dan Carden and Yvette Cooper

Monday 5th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

We have strengthened our relationships with our European partners—indeed, I have been in touch with the Danish Foreign Minister today on the issues around Greenland—and we will continue to support the rules-based international order, the UN charter and international law. I would warn Members against making equivalence here with what Putin has done in Ukraine; Russia invaded a country led by a democratically elected President Zelensky, and thousands of children have been kidnapped. We should be careful about what we say and its implications.

[Dan Carden (Liverpool Walton) (Lab)]

I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s statement on an incredibly complex international situation. Maduro stole elections and murdered opponents, and 9 million Venezuelans were forced to flee their country. Venezuelans will be both fearful and hopeful for the future. This episode shows the US shifting to the western hemisphere, leaving European security more exposed, and the willingness of the US to interfere in foreign states, with serious implications for our NATO ally Denmark. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that what the UK can now usefully do is use any influence we have to pursue Venezuela’s transition to democracy, learn from this event, and accelerate the meeting of our defence and national security commitments?

[Yvette Cooper]

My hon. Friend is exactly right about the fear and hope felt by many people in Venezuela; we have had that reflected back to us over the weekend. That is why we are doing everything we can—we are in an unusual position, given our experience and relationships —to promote and support a transition to democracy. I also agree about the importance of increasing our defence investment; that is why we now have the biggest increase in defence investment since the end of the cold war.

Immigration System

Debate between Dan Carden and Yvette Cooper

Monday 12th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

I gently say to the hon. Member that a series of labour market issues needs to be addressed. As he will know, Scotland’s labour market faced challenges when net migration was at 900,000—that level of net migration did not solve the issues across Scotland’s labour market. There is a serious issue about what should happen about skills, training and different workforce strategies across Scotland. We have been clear that the skills’ bodies and the devolved Governments from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland need to be part of the labour market evidence group, so that we can have a broad strategy that will properly deal with the labour market challenges that we face.

[Dan Carden (Liverpool Walton) (Lab)]

I welcome the Home Secretary’s emphasis on the contribution of migrants; historically, the city of Liverpool has been made up of migrants. I welcome the White Paper and her statement today, in particular linking migration to labour market strategy, because migration is a key economic lever of the state. Does she agree with me that it is not a left or right issue, but part of the loss of trust in democratic politics, and that we need an asylum and immigration system that has, most importantly, democratic consent?

[Yvette Cooper]

My hon. Friend is right to raise the issue of trust and confidence, because when people feel that the system is not working or is not under control, or that there is a huge gap between rhetoric and reality, trust is undermined. For generations, people have valued the work of those who have come to the UK in order to work, contribute, study and be part of communities, but it has to be controlled and managed. It has not been controlled and managed, and that has undermined confidence too.

Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill

Debate between Dan Carden and Yvette Cooper

2nd reading
Monday 7th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

That would be very helpful. But we also need to know when this visa application centre will be set up and operational, because right now this means that people are being turned away from Calais because they do not have the biometrics or the security checks they need and so are being sent back to Paris in order to do so. We need to know when that is going to be in place.

[Dan Carden (Liverpool, Walton) (Lab)]

Are not the Government and the Home Secretary absolutely out of step with the British public on this? When bombs are raining down on families across Ukraine, the public want us to open the doors and welcome them in.

[Yvette Cooper]

I think the public want to see us doing our bit, and that is not what is happening. What people are seeing time and again is families having to leap over additional hurdles—additional bureaucracy. People are being told to wait 72 hours after their security checks are all cleared just because of bureaucracy. Lots of relatives are still being left out. Elderly aunts or 19-year-old nieces are not included and are being turned away. That is the point. [Interruption.] If the Home Secretary says that is not correct, I really urge her to stand up and clarify it, because at the moment her guidance says that elderly aunts and 19-year-old nieces are not included in the family visa scheme.