Ukraine

Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale Excerpts

Friday 25th October 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, I draw attention to my entries in the register of interests. I wholeheartedly endorse the first comment made by the noble Baroness, Lady Fall, about the sacrifice of the Ukrainians. It humbles and inspires us, and it should continue to do so. I congratulate my noble friend Lord Coaker on his magisterial opening of this debate and the Government on continuing the policy and approach of the previous Government, showing that this country remains united in support of Ukraine and against the Russian invasion.

I warmly welcome and congratulate my new noble friend Lord Spellar on an excellent maiden speech. He is absolutely right to draw attention to the fact that the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in 2014, not in 2022, with the invasion of Crimea and then the eastern part of Ukraine. But we should also draw attention to the fact that this is not a solitary exercise. We see violence and aggression sponsored, and sometimes directly actioned, by Russia in west and central Africa; in Syria, of course, in support of the Assad regime; and in the suppression of democracy and freedom in Kazakhstan, Georgia, Belarus and elsewhere on the Russian border. We should never underestimate the scale of this effort to influence not just life in Russia and the neighbouring countries but our lives and the rest of the world.

We must salute the resilience of the Ukrainian people, who I do not believe were given much chance by many people around the world when the invasion took place. I draw attention to their work not just on the battlefield, where they have given so much and shown so much innovation and expertise, but on reconstruction. That is the other half of the Ukrainian Government’s efforts, which have been so admirable through these last nearly three years. An outstanding digital public services system, for example, has been developed, which is giving people access to public services and public information, even when they are in bunkers underground, hiding from the bombs that are raining down above. They are trying hard to rebuild schools, provide health facilities and create the industrial infrastructure that will help to protect them in the future.

We need to continue to do all we can to help the Ukrainians, not just on the battlefield but particularly in those preparations for reconstruction, by ensuring that they have as much access as possible to British companies and expertise, and that we support them through the rebuilding of their public services. A very good example of that practical British support for Ukraine is in the Interflex programme that my noble friend Lord Coaker referred to, which I have seen up close with my own eyes at one of the training camps in the UK. That is an outstanding example of work here in the UK to support the efforts of the sometimes-inexperienced recruits to the Ukrainian army in going back on to the front line.

I endorse the point made by the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Stirrup, about the need for us to win the battle of ideas—to explain and convince across Europe and elsewhere, not just to provide practical support. He was joined by the noble Lord, Lord Alton, in talking about a global struggle for peace, democracy and freedom. I would be very interested to know from the Minister, at the end of this debate, whether the Government are giving any thought to the fact that President Biden, when he took office, talked about a global alliance of democracies and building that resilience against the authoritarian states—motivating and convincing the rest of the world to understand our values but also adopt them. But, of course, that is perhaps in danger in the American elections in just two weeks’ time. Are the Government giving any thought to the role that the UK can play in building that global alliance for democracy and freedom?

On the practical support, I would like to hear more about what the Government are doing to take forward the issue of releasing the funds that have been sanctioned from those Russians who have supported the Putin regime. In particular, it is now over two years—nearly two and a half—since Chelsea Football Club was sold. Over £2 billion is sitting in an account here in London, waiting to be spent on the reconstruction and humanitarian effort not just in Ukraine but in those countries elsewhere in the world that have been affected by the situation in Ukraine, particularly in relation to food security, for example. What are we doing? The noble Lord, Lord Cameron, managed as Foreign Secretary to step up the action in the Foreign Office on this and was starting to work towards a goal of releasing these funds. Are the new Government as determined as he was? Will we see some resolution of this issue over the coming months?

Finally, in advance of the Budget next Wednesday, in all of this, if we have a global struggle on our hands, we need to be actively engaged in conflict prevention around the world—not just dealing with the consequences of conflict but preventing it. The Integrated Security Fund that replaced the CSSF in the Budget earlier this year is a critical tool in the armoury of the UK and our global allies in fighting conflict and preventing it. I checked yesterday and there has not been one Statement by the new Government since the election in July about the Integrated Security Fund in either House of Parliament. I would like to know whether the Integrated Security Fund and its objectives are going to be protected in next week’s Budget.