To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will hold discussions with relevant stakeholders on developing an industrial strategy to support countries to diversify their dependency on hostile states.
Answered on
14 March 2022
The UK and its international partners have stood united in condemning the Russian government in response to its invasion of Ukraine. The Government has imposed an unprecedented package of sanctions to inflict maximum and lasting pain on Russia.
The Government has banned Russian ships from UK ports, stopped Russian planes from landing at UK airports, and excluded Russian banks from the City of London – the second largest financial centre in the world. Major Russian companies can no longer raise finance in our markets.
UK companies must comply with the sanctions imposed by the UK and its allies. The Government is not imposing any legal requirement on companies to go further, and businesses should make their own choices about trade outside of those sanctions. But the Government applauds those who have chosen to take that extra step for the people of Ukraine.
The Government has also been clear in its view that the whole of Europe must end its dependence on Russian oil and gas, and has been working with European partners to support them in diversifying energy supplies.