The Rt Hon Nick Thomas–Symonds MP
Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General
70 Whitehall
London
SW1A 2AS
26 January 2026
Cc:
The Rt Hon John Healey MP, Secretary of State for Defence,
The Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change,
The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP , Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs,
The Rt Hon Stephen Doughty MP, Minister of State (Europe, North America and Overseas Territories)
Dear Mr Thomas–Symonds,
We are a coalition of civil society organisations from Ukraine, Europe, and the UK, writing to urge the UK Government not to renew the public sector gas supply contract with TotalEnergies, which currently serves multiple central government departments, including the Cabinet Office, 10 Downing Street, the Foreign Office, the Treasury, and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The contract is due for renewal through a process beginning in February 2026. We previously raised this issue in a letter to you in July 2025 and are writing again, given the continued and urgent ethical, security, and foreign policy implications of maintaining this arrangement with a company that continues to do business with Russia.
In view of escalating Russian hybrid attacks against the UK, and ongoing brutal attacks across Ukraine, public sector procurement must align not only with sanctions but also with government foreign policy, including efforts to deter and disrupt Russian aggression. Just last week, Defence Secretary John Healey outlined to Parliament that deterring, disrupting, and degrading the Russian oil shadow fleet is a priority for this Government. We are concerned that continuing a contract with companies involved with Russia’s energy sector is inconsistent with this stance on national security.
Since the full-scale invasion of 24 February 2022, Russia has earned an estimated €1004 billion in revenue from fossil fuel exports, with a significant portion of these revenues funding the Russian military, which has an annual budget of around $140 billion.
As of today, TotalEnergies continues to import Russian gas to Europe under long-term contracts. It is also a joint shareholder in the Russia’s new strategic assets: the Siberian and Arctic LNG projects. While these activities may be lawful under current regulations, we are concerned that they indirectly contribute to Russian energy revenues, thereby helping support ongoing military operations against Ukraine and exacerbating climate risks.
The UK has rightly emphasised ethical, security, and supply-chain considerations in public sector procurement, including the need to ensure that public sector procurement is not awarded to companies implicated in human rights abuses and linked to authoritarian regimes that may use energy revenues to fund aggression. Applying these principles in practice is essential for both national security and for upholding the UK’s international credibility in supporting Ukraine and tackling climate change.
Therefore, we respectfully urge the Government to:
Decline to renew the TotalEnergies public sector gas contract in 2026, and to make a public announcement that the contract will not be renewed due to their business connections in Russia.
Implement broader deterrent measures to disincentivise businesses from continuing commercial ties with Russia, including restrictions on access to government contracts and exclusion from public procurement opportunities.
Set out a clear plan for transitioning government departments to clean, conflict-free energy sources.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. We would welcome your response regarding the steps the Government will take to ensure that public sector energy procurement aligns with ethical, security, and climate priorities.
Yours sincerely,
UK Member of Parliament, Alex Sobel, Chair APPG Ukraine
UK Member of Parliament, Carla Denyer
UK Member of Parliament, Sian Berry
UK Member of Parliament, Adrian Ramsay
B4Ukraine
Razom We Stand
Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA)
Dekleptocracy
Economists for Ukraine
Mission Possible from Poland
Clean Air Action Group, Hungary
Les Amis de la Terre France
International charitable organization “Environment – People – Law”
Notre Affaire à Tous
Stowarzyszenie Ekologiczne EKO-UNIA
EKOenergy ecolabel
Mothers Rise Up
DiXi Group
Centre for Transport and Energy
Just Shift
Rinascimento Green
The Climate Reality Project Europe
Urgewald
Jubilee Australia Research Centre
Greenpeace Ukraine
Greenpeace UK
Zero Waste Society
The Independent Anti-Corruption Commission (NAKO)
SaveDnipro NGO
ANTS, National Interests Advocacy Network
CGS Strategy XXI
NGO Centre for Analytical Study and Countering Hybrid Threats (CASCHT)
NGO Ekoltava
NGO “ForestCom”
NGO StateWatch
NGO Ecoclub
Centre for Environmental Initiatives Ecoaction
Uplift
Reclaim Finance
Parents for Future UK