Extract from Business
Questions
(Rhondda) (Lab): Since
the invasion of Ukraine started, the UK has only managed to
sanction nine individuals, nearly all of whom have already been
sanctioned by other countries—some since 2014. It is only nine
individuals, not the hundreds the Prime Minister has referred to.
I think everyone in this House wants to see the Government move
much faster on sanctioning individuals, because at the moment it
feels like we are basically saying to them, “You’ve got a few
weeks to sort yourselves out and launder all your money away.”
Foreign Office officials and the National Crime
Agency are saying, in effect, that they may not be
able to do anything, for instance, about Alisher Usmanov for
months. He has already been sanctioned in the EU. Can we think of
clever ways in Parliament, using parliamentary privilege, to make
sure that we can advance these sanctions?
The Leader of the House of Commons (): I thank the hon.
Gentleman for his question. He will recognise that we have
introduced these measures now where we can bring forward those
sanctions. He is also right to recognise that that is best done
across the international community, so that there is no safe
haven. A process is in place. I do not want to get drawn into
discussing individual names in the Chamber today, but the
Government are looking very closely at what more we can do and
drawing up a list of people we can certainly take our sanctions
fight to. I am sure that more updates will be given at the
Dispatch Box in the near future.
Extract from Commons
statement on Russia’s Attack on Ukraine
(Rhondda) (Lab): I warmly
commend the Secretary of State for the statement that she made
earlier and on the tears that she was pouring out over
journalists such as Clive Myrie, who are doing a fabulous job. I
hope she will not be cross with me now—she likes being cross with
me—but some of us are anxious about why we are not going further
on the sanctioning of individuals. It is a mystery to me why
Roman Abramovich has not yet been sanctioned. The Government know
that he has been engaged in illicit activity and is a person of
concern to the Government, which is why they have not been
encouraging him to come to the UK. I do not know why Alisher
Usmanov has not yet been sanctioned. He has been sanctioned by
the EU, but not by us. He owns Sutton Place. I do not know why we
have not seized that asset. I do not know why the UK has not yet
seized a single yacht, flat or property of any kind while other
countries in Europe are able to do that. Finally, I wonder
whether the Minister will condemn John Terry today. I do not know
whether she has seen this, but he has posted today a photo of
himself with Roman Abramovich, who is one of Putin’s cronies.
What will the people of Ukraine think of the former England
football captain?
The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
( ): I thank my friend the
hon. Gentleman for his warm words. I think I just held the tears
back—I am a blubberer, as he knows—and I commend him. For Members
who have not been on these Benches for many years, he is not a
Johnny-come-lately to this issue; he has been campaigning on
these issues for many years, including on Magnitsky, and he is a
good friend of Bill Browder. He has been raising the issue of
Russia for as long as I have been here, which is a very long
time. I thank him. It is no surprise to me that he is like a dog
with a bone on this, because it has always been one of his
passionate interests, and MPs are always at their best and most
effective when they campaign in their moment, and his time is
here, on this.
I heard everything that the hon. Gentleman said. I heard what he
said in business questions. I have heard everything he has said
since this happened last Thursday, and I have been watching him
carefully—that may disconcert him. Obviously I cannot name
individuals in the way that he can, but I know that the Foreign,
Commonwealth and Development Office is working on sanctioning. He
knows that sanctions are its responsibility and that it is
working on those sanctions. I also know that he knows about
issues around the National Crime
Agency and others, and we all know that this is the
mother of Parliaments. We are a legislator, and we abide by the
principle of law. He knows that, too, and I know he will find
that frustrating.
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