Catherine has supported calls from the Labour Party for the Government to repurpose frozen Russian state assets to pay for the recovery of Ukraine, with international estimates placing the cost of the physical damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure at up to $1 trillion.

Catherine told Parliament “Russia’s illegal invasion has not been able to break the spirit of Ukrainians, nor the resolve of NATO and allies to stand alongside them, both now, and once victory has been achieved as Ukraine rebuilds from this inflicted disaster”.

The Newcastle North MP added that “The Government needs to turn its rhetoric into action and put money where its mouth is. The people of Ukraine deserve nothing less.”

Catherine highlighted action being taken by the US and the EU to repurpose frozen Russian assets, whilst also noting “the unquantifiable suffering inflicted upon the people of Ukraine by the Russian state places a moral duty on our country to help where we can. The fact that the UK has been a willing host to Russian wealth compounds that moral duty.”

Commenting after the debate, Catherine said:

“As well as the unspeakable loss of human life, Russia’s illegal and unjust invasion has crippled Ukraine’s vital public infrastructure. No amount of money can undo the damage to human lives, but once the war is over Ukraine must be given all the support it needs to rebuild and thrive in the future.

“Russian state assets in our country must be utilised to rectify the damage Russia has caused. We must do all we can to ensure Ukraine has a bright future, and we can take action by repurposing frozen Russian state assets to support that end.”

You can read Catherine’s full speech in Hansard here