Contributions
216 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDLow and Middle-income Countries: Debt RestructuringIt is very important that we provide alternatives to finance so that Commonwealth and other countries have a choice. I am very proud of the work I did to set up the Caribbean…12 Mar 2024HANSARDLow and Middle-income Countries: Debt RestructuringObviously, I remember fondly when we were working together in passing the Act to which the noble Lord refers. When that Act was passed there was a real problem with vulture funds…12 Mar 2024HANSARDLow and Middle-income Countries: Debt RestructuringMy Lords, I have raised this issue directly with the Chancellor of the Exchequer. I completely understand the concern to ensure that private sector debt is fully part of debt…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionGenerally speaking, in negotiations it is not a good idea to have too many artificial deadlines. Obviously, there is something of a deadline coming up as we are heading for a new…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI think the noble Baroness is right to put it like that, but that is what the trade and co-operation agreement is about. We have structured co-operation when it comes to that part…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI am grateful for the noble Lord’s question. I spent some time in Germany last week making exactly this argument. It is obviously a sovereign decision for Germany, and so, just as…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionWe have taken quite a forward view. We think there is a moral and political case for doing this, and we do not see the supposed economic damage that would be done as a strong…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI do not think we should rule out different ways of working with the EU, but the Ukraine situation shows how the current arrangements can be made to work well. I have always said…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI think I can give that undertaking. The Prime Minister announced the package of support for Ukraine, at over £2.7 billion, which will ensure that it has the support it deserves…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI am confident that a date will be set, that an excellent venue will be provided, and that the meeting will be a great success. We found that in the early part of the year there…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionI will look closely at the case that the noble Baroness raises. The Windsor Framework was a very good piece of negotiation that has helped to get the institutions back up and…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionThe noble Lord is completely right that Ukraine needs our help, and needs it urgently. We are continuing to discuss with allies the best legal basis for making progress. We…12 Mar 2024HANSARDPresident of the European CommissionMy Lords, I have no immediate plans to meet the Commission President, but I meet regularly with Josep Borrell, the high representative, and with Maroš Šefčovič, who is the…12 Mar 2024HANSARDForeign AffairsYou are very kind, thank you. The most reverend Primate, the noble Lord, Lord Boateng, and a number of others made speeches about the importance of peacemaking. The Archbishop…05 Mar 2024HANSARDForeign AffairsI am very sorry. If I have time at the end, I will take interventions. It is a challenge to try to answer 63 speeches—I am determined to be equal to it. The noble Lord, Lord…05 Mar 2024HANSARDForeign AffairsBe careful. Action has also involved talking to people who we do not agree with, including sitting down directly with the Iranian Foreign Minister and delivering some very tough…05 Mar 2024HANSARDForeign AffairsI thank all noble Lords for their contributions today. It is great to follow the noble Lord, Lord Collins, and let me tell him, in the spirit of cross-party politics, that every…05 Mar 2024HANSARDPalestinian State: UK RecognitionI absolutely understand where my noble friend is coming from. I just say to him that of course it is not rewarding Hamas. Hamas does not believe in a two-state solution: it…13 Feb 2024HANSARDPalestinian State: UK RecognitionMy Lords, this Government have always supported a two-state solution, and that remains the case. Clearly, recognising a Palestinian state at the right time is part of that policy.…13 Feb 2024HANSARDAUKUS Security PartnershipI do not believe that the noble and gallant Lord’s concerns are right. The money going into Barrow is a drop in the ocean compared to the cost of one submarine: as he well knows,…13 Feb 2024