Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on the human rights situation in Iran; and if he will make a statement.

Iran’s human rights record remains cause for grave concern. More than 200 people have reportedly been executed in 2014, with many more prisoners on death row at risk of imminent execution. The most recent (August 2014) figures from Human Rights Watch suggest that there are an estimated 895 political prisoners/prisoners of conscience in detention across the country. Freedom of expression continues to be suppressed with widespread Internet censorship, the continuing closure of media outlets and systematic targeting of journalists and bloggers. Religious and ethnic minorities also continue to face widespread discrimination.