Written Question·Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office·UIN 183217
Ukraine: Humanitarian Aid
Tabled: 27 April 2023
Answered: 3 May 2023
Named DayQuestion
Nadia Whittome
Labour — Nottingham East
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when charities in Ukraine are expected to receive the £2.3 billion from Roman Abramovich's sale of Chelsea.
Answer
The proceeds from the sale of Chelsea FC are frozen in a UK bank account. They cannot be moved or used without a licence from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation. Humanitarian experts outside of Government are responsible for the highly complex process to establish a foundation to manage and distribute the proceeds for humanitarian purposes in Ukraine. Setting up an organisation of this scale rightly takes time.