Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Montenegrin counterpart on alleged attacks and criticisms of non-governmental organisations in that country.

During discussions in January with the Montenegrin Foreign Minister, I welcomed the new Montenegrin government's commitment to making the reforms required for deeper Euro-Atlantic integration. Our Embassy in Podgorica is in regular contact with civil society to hear their concerns and is working with them on a range of projects to strengthen democratic institutions. The Montenegrin government is working cooperatively with a number of NGOs on some issues, although other NGOs are concerned that this may limit the sector's ability to hold the government to account