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 Nicaraguan counterpart regarding the imprisonment of President Ortega's political opponents in that country.

The Nicaraguan elections of 7 November 2021 were neither free nor fair. The authorities used their powers to detain and threaten Presidential candidates and therefore prevented the Nicaraguan people from making a democratic choice. The arrests of political leaders violated the guarantees in the Nicaraguan Constitution; the UK continues to call for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in Nicaragua and for the full restoration of their civil and political rights. We have made the views of the UK government clear when meeting representatives of the Nicaraguan authorities in London, in Managua, and at multilateral fora. We have published a series of statements highlighting the UK's deep concern about the deterioration of political and human rights in Nicaragua and the subversion of democratic processes, including at the UN Human Rights Council earlier this month. We are working closely with partners to promote democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in Nicaragua.