Greenland: Proposed US Tariffs

Lord Bishop of Manchester Excerpts

Monday 19th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

It is Monday, and these announcements were made at the weekend, so further announcements will be made. I agree that the defence investment strategy is incredibly important, but it should be published when it is ready and we should not be rushed into doing things before that.

[The Lord Bishop of Manchester]

My Lords, I agree with many noble Lords who have spoken about the importance of diplomacy in this, yet I feel that there is a danger that diplomacy takes place at a high level, over the heads of the Greenlanders themselves. It was only a few days ago in this Chamber that my right reverend friend the Lord Bishop of Chester, who unfortunately is not able to be with us just yet this afternoon, asked whether we could strengthen our diplomatic ties in Nuuk with the Greenlanders directly. That would give a lot of moral support and would mean that Britain’s Government would have a much better understanding of what the Greenlanders themselves are thinking, rather than what other people are telling them to think.

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I agree that this needs to have the Greenlanders at the heart of it. I am pleased that many Ministers have met their counterparts in Greenland, not just in response to recent events but as part of a long-standing arrangement. The right reverend Prelate makes a strong point that diplomacy should never happen somewhere else. What recent events have proved is that geopolitics is not something that happens out there, away from here. It has a direct impact on people’s jobs and livelihoods, our manufacturing industry and almost every element of life in the United Kingdom. That is why this is being taken quite so seriously by the Government.