British Embassy (Tehran)

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 30th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

The European Union has been very helpful. Baroness Ashton, the High Representative, issued a very strong and prompt statement about the issue and of course we will work with EU representatives on this matter. We have been fortunate in having such robust support from France, Germany and many other of the member states of the European Union.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

This is the second outrage against this country by the Iranians; the Foreign Secretary will recall what happened with HMS Cornwall a few years ago. I support what the Government have said today. They are right in the action that they have taken and I urge them to continue to be firm in a practical and sensible way.

May I ask the Foreign Secretary a specific question? When did the ambassador or his staff last meet the Iranian authorities to discuss the security of the embassy? Were any concerns raised at that meeting and was there a report back to the Foreign Office in London expressing those concerns? If he does not know the answer, will he write to me with the information?

[Mr Hague]

I am grateful for the support of the hon. Gentleman, who remembers well the United Kingdom’s previous incidents with Iran. There have of course been regular discussions, and concerns have regularly been expressed about the security of the embassy to the Iranian authorities, but I will have to write to him with the exact chronology that he is asking for.

Afghanistan

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 27th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

There is no place in our policies for the mistreatment of detainees, and we have been very clear about that as a Government. We have, of course, published the guidance we give to our intelligence officers and announced an inquiry into previous allegations. But I do condemn the unauthorised release of information, which can endanger our forces and people who have worked with our forces, and which gives a one-sided propaganda gift for insurgent, so I condemn those leaks. It is our forces who are engaged, above all, in protecting the civilian population in Afghanistan, often having to accept casualties because of the work they do to protect that civilian population. The people who indiscriminately attack the civilian population and do not care whether women, children and other people are blown up by their improvised explosive devices are the insurgents and the terrorists.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

May I thank the Foreign Secretary for the report and ask him to give an example of when during a conflict or war and in the middle of a battle we gave our enemy prior notice that we would be leaving the battlefield?

[Mr Hague]

For all the reasons that I have given, I think that this is the right thing to do. As I said, there are legitimate differences of view, but considering the subject in the round and the length of our deployment, as well as the need to emphasise the building up of the Afghan national security forces—to concentrate on that over the next few years and to be clear with the Afghan Government that that is our intention—we think that it is right to say what we have about 2015. Of course, it does not mean that forces fighting for stability in Afghanistan are at any point leaving the battlefield. There are now more international security assistance forces and Afghan forces deployed than at any stage in the past nine years. Given the huge increases that are envisaged in the size of the Afghan national security forces, there will continue to be an increase in the number of forces available for years to come. The forces of security and stability in Afghanistan are not leaving the battlefield.