To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what equipment and training his Department is providing to Ukraine to aid mine clearance.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what equipment and training his Department is providing to Ukraine to aid mine clearance.

Motion that this House has considered land mine awareness. Agreed to on question. Sitting suspended.

Motion that this House has considered land mine awareness. Agreed to on question. Sitting suspended.

I beg to move,

That this House has considered land mine awareness.

Thank you for chairing this debate, Mr Mundell. I recognise that the HALO Trust is based in your constituency. The HALO Trust is one of the leading global non-governmental organisations carrying out de-mining, and I know that you have a...

I beg to move,

That this House has considered land mine awareness.

Thank you for chairing this debate, Mr Mundell. I recognise that the HALO Trust is based in your constituency. The HALO Trust is one of the leading global non-governmental organisations carrying out de-mining, and I know that you have a...

I congratulate the right hon. Lady on securing the debate. Organisations such as the HALO Trust, whose headquarters are in your constituency in Scotland, Mr Mundell, do incredibly important work that truly saves lives, and I place my gratitude to them on the record. Does the right hon. Lady agree...

I congratulate the right hon. Lady on securing the debate. Organisations such as the HALO Trust, whose headquarters are in your constituency in Scotland, Mr Mundell, do incredibly important work that truly saves lives, and I place my gratitude to them on the record. Does the right hon. Lady agree...

The hon. Lady makes a really important point. Funding is crucial for de-mining work, and it is NGOs and charities that go and do this work. It is not the sort of work that Governments do, because it needs the neutrality of an NGO. As well as the HALO Trust,...

The hon. Lady makes a really important point. Funding is crucial for de-mining work, and it is NGOs and charities that go and do this work. It is not the sort of work that Governments do, because it needs the neutrality of an NGO. As well as the HALO Trust,...

Landmines may seem like an problem from conflicts long past, but their use in Ukraine has brought this issue, rightly, back into the spotlight. Does the right hon. Member agree that there needs to be stronger deterrence of landmine use in conflict, and consequences for the resulting loss of civilian...

Landmines may seem like an problem from conflicts long past, but their use in Ukraine has brought this issue, rightly, back into the spotlight. Does the right hon. Member agree that there needs to be stronger deterrence of landmine use in conflict, and consequences for the resulting loss of civilian...

The hon. Lady must be looking ahead in my speech or else she is psychic, because I intended to touch on the subject of Ukraine. That conflict—the illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine by the Russians—is a reminder that the use of landmines is prevalent today; it still happens. I...

The hon. Lady must be looking ahead in my speech or else she is psychic, because I intended to touch on the subject of Ukraine. That conflict—the illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine by the Russians—is a reminder that the use of landmines is prevalent today; it still happens. I...

I thank the right hon. Lady for making an excellent speech and bringing this vital issue to the Chamber.

I had the opportunity a few years ago to visit the War Childhood Museum in Sarajevo. The Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre understands there are around 180,000 unexploded mines left following...

I thank the right hon. Lady for making an excellent speech and bringing this vital issue to the Chamber.

I had the opportunity a few years ago to visit the War Childhood Museum in Sarajevo. The Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre understands there are around 180,000 unexploded mines left following...

The hon. Lady makes a really important point. We both served on the International Development Committee a number of years ago, so I know that she has a great interest in international development, and in mental health and wellbeing too. That point about

education and support for the next generation...

The hon. Lady makes a really important point. We both served on the International Development Committee a number of years ago, so I know that she has a great interest in international development, and in mental health and wellbeing too. That point about

education and support for the next generation...

indicated assent.

indicated assent.

I can see that the Minister is nodding. My point is in relation to humanitarian aid getting through to the civilians who need it.

A few years ago, we had many a debate on Syria in this House. It was good to notice on Twitter this morning that HALO has just...

I can see that the Minister is nodding. My point is in relation to humanitarian aid getting through to the civilians who need it.

A few years ago, we had many a debate on Syria in this House. It was good to notice on Twitter this morning that HALO has just...

What a pleasure it is to follow the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton). I thank her for setting the scene so incredibly well. Her interest in the subject is well known in the House, and we are pleased to see that when the responsibilities of being a Minister...

What a pleasure it is to follow the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton). I thank her for setting the scene so incredibly well. Her interest in the subject is well known in the House, and we are pleased to see that when the responsibilities of being a Minister...

What is probably most awful about landmines is that they are indiscriminate: they cannot tell the difference between an innocent civilian and the enemy, and they remain long after conflicts end. As we have heard, too many children have lost their lives because of that. Does the hon. Member share...

What is probably most awful about landmines is that they are indiscriminate: they cannot tell the difference between an innocent civilian and the enemy, and they remain long after conflicts end. As we have heard, too many children have lost their lives because of that. Does the hon. Member share...

I certainly do. The right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills called for that, and I endorse what the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) says. That is one ask of mine and of the right hon. Lady, and it will certainly be one of the asks of the...

I certainly do. The right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills called for that, and I endorse what the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) says. That is one ask of mine and of the right hon. Lady, and it will certainly be one of the asks of the...

The point about disability is really important in the development space. That is something I learned when I was in east Africa, in countries such as Rwanda. It is difficult enough for someone in this country who becomes or is born disabled, even though there is a lot of support....

The point about disability is really important in the development space. That is something I learned when I was in east Africa, in countries such as Rwanda. It is difficult enough for someone in this country who becomes or is born disabled, even though there is a lot of support....

The right hon. Lady speaks with great knowledge and understanding, and I do not think anybody present or watching on TV would disagree with her. With compassion in our hearts, we have to see how these people are affected and how we can help them. That is part of the...

The right hon. Lady speaks with great knowledge and understanding, and I do not think anybody present or watching on TV would disagree with her. With compassion in our hearts, we have to see how these people are affected and how we can help them. That is part of the...

You try, Jim.

You try, Jim.

Sometimes I try—the other me must be a cardboard cut-out.

Ukraine is a country that needs help. If we look at the time that it took to clear the landmines in the Falklands and in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific ocean— 40 and 80 years—we know the job in Ukraine...

Sometimes I try—the other me must be a cardboard cut-out.

Ukraine is a country that needs help. If we look at the time that it took to clear the landmines in the Falklands and in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific ocean— 40 and 80 years—we know the job in Ukraine...

I agree with most of what the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) says—he was doing so well. If anyone in this place could find a way of being in two places at once, it probably would be him. I thank, commend and congratulate the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills...

I agree with most of what the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) says—he was doing so well. If anyone in this place could find a way of being in two places at once, it probably would be him. I thank, commend and congratulate the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills...

It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Mundell. I congratulate the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton)—I hope she will permit me to call her my right hon. Friend—on securing such an important debate as near as we could get to 4 April. I was...

It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Mundell. I congratulate the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton)—I hope she will permit me to call her my right hon. Friend—on securing such an important debate as near as we could get to 4 April. I was...