Ed Miliband was pressed on the issue in the Commons by Calum Miller, the Liberal Democrats’ foreign affairs spokesman, at Foreign Office questions on Tuesday. The matter concerns more than £2.6 billion from the sale of Chelsea Football Club, which has remained in a UK bank account since May 2022 amid a dispute between the government and Roman Abramovich over what should happen to the funds.
Question raised in the Commons
Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by Britain over his links to Vladimir Putin’s Russian regime. He was then forced to sell Chelsea Football Club in May 2022.
Miliband told the Commons: "But we are absolutely determined to take action on the question he raised around Chelsea."
He would not comment directly on the Chelsea sale.
Funds still not transferred
According to the response to a written question from Calum Miller, the government gave Abramovich a 90-day deadline in December when it "issued a licence permitting the transfer of over £2.6 billion in proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club into a new foundation for humanitarian purposes in Ukraine".
Uma Kumaran said: "No such transfer has yet been made."
The proceeds of Chelsea's sale have stayed in a UK bank account ever since.
Miliband on Russian assets
Miliband told the Commons that the UK and its allies are working to hand over Russian assets frozen since the start of the Ukraine war to Kyiv this winter.
He said: "But more broadly, one of the things that we will be urging in the coming months is our EU partners, and in Britain, us moving on Russian sovereign assets more generally, because we know that one of the most important things we need to do is give proper support to Ukraine through this winter and beyond, and Russian sovereign assets are a very, very ideal way to do that."
Miller calls for court action
After the Commons exchange, Miller urged the government to act swiftly to claim the frozen assets.
He said: "It is completely unacceptable that over £2.6 billion meant for Ukrainian war victims continues to sit unused in a British bank account."
Miller added: "The government say they are ‘absolutely determined’ to resolve this, but its refusal to set a firm deadline tells a very different story. Empty promises mean nothing to the people of Ukraine who are enduring unimaginable hardship today, while Roman Abramovich’s lawyers kick the can down the road."
He also said: "The foreign secretary must stop dragging his feet and take Abramovich to court."
