Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Pakistani counterpart on the destruction of two Ahmadiyya places of worship in Chahur Mughliyan and Chahur Kotli on 2 September 2025.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer on 29 October to question 83844.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Pakistani counterparts on the attack on the Ahmadiyya community at Bait-ul-Mahdi Mosque in Rabwah on 10 October 2025.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 29 October to question 82128.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Iranian counterparts on recent reports of six Baha’i women facing imminent imprisonment for their beliefs in Hamadan, Iran.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government and our Ambassador in Iran regularly raise our human rights concerns directly with the Iranian Government and in international fora. We are deeply concerned by the heightened threat currently faced by Baha'is in Iran.
On 23 September 2025, at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), UK Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization and UN, Kumar Iyer, highlighted the recent targeting and scapegoating of marginalised groups during and following the 12-day war, including Baha'is. On 25 March 2025, at the UNHRC, we called out Iran's escalation in the arrest and detention of Baha'i women, which was an effort to suppress their religious identity and autonomy as women. We were integral to the delivery of an Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the UNHRC on 3 April 2025, which renewed the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, and renewed and expanded the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission, to establish the facts, circumstances and structural causes of ongoing and recent human rights violations, including discrimination on grounds of religion or belief.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Moroccan counterpart on ensuring protection for (a) human rights activists and (b) religious minorities in that country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to the promotion and protection of human rights globally, including freedoms of expression and association. The UK also champions Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all and it is our firm opinion that no one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe.
Officials, including up to Ambassador level, engage on these issues with the Moroccan Government and authorities accordingly. The UK shares a bilateral Human Rights Dialogue with Morocco, the third session of which is due to take place in London by the end of the year.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Iranian counterpart on (a) the illegal obtention of (i) property and (ii) assets of and (b) other attacks on the Baha’i community; and what diplomatic steps he is taking to help ensure the (a) protection of that community and (b) promotion of religious freedom in that country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our Ambassador in Iran and the former Foreign Secretary raised have human rights directly with the Iranian government and we regularly highlight Iran's repression of Baha'is in multilateral fora, including at the UN Human Rights Council in March. We were integral to the delivery of an Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on 3 April, which renewed and expanded the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran to investigate a wider breadth of violations, and to establish the facts, circumstances and structural causes of such violations, including discrimination on grounds of religion or belief. On 3 July, the Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, David Smith MP, met Baha'i International Community UN Representative, Simin Fahandej, to discuss the current and historic repression of Baha'is in Iran, and on 8 July, the Special Envoy delivered a speech where he highlighted Baha'is acute vulnerability to scapegoating, incitement and threats of violence from authorities.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Iranian authorities on attacks on the Baha’i community including the illegal obtention of property and assets; and what steps is he taking to ensure (a) their protection and (b) the promotion of religious freedom in the country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly condemns the repression of religious minorities in Iran, including Baha'is. On 18 March, the UK's Permanent Representative to the UN highlighted the continued systematic targeting and repression of religious minorities at the UN Human Rights Council. We were integral to the delivery of an Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on 3 April, which renewed and expanded the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran to investigate a wider breadth of violations, and to establish the facts, circumstances and structural causes of such violations, including discrimination on grounds of religion or belief. On 3 July, the Special Envoy met Baha'i International Community UN Representative, Simin Fahandej, to discuss the current and historic situation of Baha'is in Iran, and on 8 July, delivered a speech where he highlighted Baha'is acute vulnerability to scapegoating, incitement and threats of violence from authorities.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to support work to eradicate polio globally.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a longstanding supporter of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), having contributed £1.4 billion since 1995. This has enabled GPEI to reduce wild poliovirus cases by over 99 per cent. The UK is also the largest donor to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, recently announcing a new investment that will support eligible countries with polio vaccines as part of an essential package of childhood immunisation.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Georgian counterpart on the treatment of (a) political opponents and (b) journalists in that country.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I remain gravely concerned by Georgia's democratic backsliding, attacks on the opposition and journalists. The former Foreign Secretary's 11 July statement condemned politically motivated detentions of opposition leaders in Georgia. On 6 August, the UK, with the Media Freedom Coalition, condemned the politically motivated sentencing of journalist Mzia Amaglobeli to two years in prison. Georgia must reverse course, uphold European values, and protect civil society and press freedom.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to ensure the protection of Greek communities in Northern Cyprus.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As a Guarantor Power and a friend to all Cypriots, the UK fully supports the UN-led Settlement process and stands ready to assist through all diplomatic channels. The best way to improve the lives of all Cypriots, including Greek communities living in the north of the island, is through a just and lasting settlement. I represented the UK at the next round of informal talks on 16 to 17 July 2025 and will continue to encourage the sides to maintain the recent momentum in the UN-led process.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if his Department will take steps to allow British nationals to register their presence in Iran.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to advise against all travel to Iran and have long made it clear that UK Government support is extremely limited in country. British nationals already in Iran, either resident or visitor, should carefully consider their presence there and the risks they take by staying, with land borders potentially closing at short notice. Due to the current security situation, we have taken the precautionary measure to temporarily withdraw our UK staff from Iran. Our Embassy will continue to operate remotely.