Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in the transfer of the funds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club from Roman Abramovich to a charitable foundation for the benefit of victims of the war in Ukraine, as originally committed to in 2022.

This Government recognises that the proceeds of the sale of Chelsea FC urgently need to be released to address the acute humanitarian needs in Ukraine. Our absolute priority is to ensure the funds reach vulnerable people in Ukraine who have endured over four years of relentless suffering as soon as possible.

Previous Governments have striven to reach an agreement with Mr Abramovich, to transfer the proceeds to support humanitarian needs in Ukraine. Despite committing to make this donation over four years ago, it has not happened, even after the UK government created a clear legal route for him to do so by issuing an OFSI licence in December last year.

Abramovich must not be allowed to delay these proceeds reaching the Ukrainian people. This government is urgently exploring further action we can take to release the funds, including preparing for a possible legal case. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on specific actions we are taking at this stage. But rest assured we are making every effort to release these funds as quickly as possible.