Speeches by Cooper.

“You are right to raise this point. We know that the ceasefire is incredibly fragile. More significantly, hundreds of people have been killed or injured since the ceasefire came into force. Obviously, that raises issues about making sure that there is effective monitoring of the ceasefire process, and also that we have …”

“I understand. At the point at which there are details to be published, there will of course be many opportunities to raise questions as well. Bear in mind that there is another crucial thing in this. A huge amount of work has been going on, involving the US and Ukraine, backed by European countries, on securing peace. …”

“We are obviously a leading part of the coalition of the willing. That has involved discussion between the Defence Ministries and armed services across different nations that are all ready to be part of the coalition of the willing. The UK is clearly a central part of that. We have had discussions across other European …”

“Thank you very much and happy Christmas to you all. [1] The witness later clarified that the correct figure is £1 million.”

“Anything that is about taking evidence from them before they take up post when there is somebody else in post, for example, is quite challenging in terms of the roles that we need people to play. Also, ambassadors need to be representatives of the whole British Government. Ultimately, I and other Ministers are accounta…”

“I would say two things on that. First, we expect greater progress from the overseas territories; we are insisting on it, and I raised it with them recently in the Joint Ministerial Council. Some of them have made substantial progress; others have been slower. Our anti-corruption champion, Baroness Hodge, has been visit…”

“Part of the reason why you are keen for more details is that those discussions are still under way, even as we speak. A very important set of peace process discussions are taking place at the moment. No one wants peace more than the Ukrainians, after everything they have endured over the last several years. But of cour…”

“I think the way in which the Committee was able to question Ed Llewellyn was a good thing, so I am recognising the point that you are making while also saying that I think this should be something to do with the way you can take evidence from ambassadors more widely.”

“Thank you for raising that point. This was just the most devastating of cyclones. I send condolences not only to all those who have lost loved ones, but in respect of the damage that people have seen to their homes and communities. We provided £675,000[1] of support through the Red Cross and UN partners, as well as civ…”

“Thank you very much for having me, Chair. It is a great pleasure to be here. As a former Committee Chair myself, I have huge respect for the work that Select Committees do. I always had a slight feeling that maybe it would be karma when I sat and answered questions from a Committee, but thank you very much. Our job, an…”

“We do want ambassadors, including those who are political appointments, to be able to give evidence to the Committee where it is appropriate to do so, so I can say that yes, we will facilitate that.”

“You will probably understand that for us to do hearings and so on while a political process, or an appointment process, is under way would obviously be very difficult.”

“As you say, this is a long-standing and deeply troubling issue. We continue to encourage the Sri Lankan Government to recognise the legitimate concerns about the need for truth and reconciliation, and to properly recognise and address some of the long-standing and serious problems and grievances. We will continue to ra…”

“I would not expect that, and I certainly would not want to see that at all. This has been an ongoing negotiation on the details; a political agreement has already been reached and signed up to by the Government of Gibraltar and the UK and Spanish Governments, and it is important that that is taken forward as rapidly as…”

“I think, to be fair, there is a whole piece of legislation going through, which offers lots of opportunities for lots of discussions in both Houses of Parliament. There have also been very many long debates, both in the Commons and the Lords, about some of the issues, including around Chagos, BIOT and so on, so there h…”

“There will be the normal processes around treaties, which include scrutiny in the Chamber. That will include discussions. It will also obviously be your prerogative to ask questions and scrutinise that from the point of view of this Select Committee as well.”

“We hope to be able to share that as swiftly as possible. The political agreement obviously was reached, but we are not yet ready to publish the full treaty. That will be published and will go before the House in due course; there will be plenty of opportunities to scrutinise the treaty.”

“I understand the point that the Committee is making here; this is something that Stephen Doughty has been dealing with in the Department, and I understand the concerns about transparency that you are raising. My expectation would be that there will be a publication, but I will pursue this issue and get back to you.”

“I don’t know the answer to that.”

“I understand that we do have information on it, but I have not yet seen the details of it.”