Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will request representatives of the British Embassy to attend the public hearing in the case of the imprisoned academic Miguel Angel Beltran scheduled for January 2016 in the city of Bogota.

The British Embassy was notified by the Colombian authorities in August 2015 of the detention of Professor Miguel Angel Beltran, who is held at La Picota prison in Bogotá.

The United Kingdom cannot interfere in the judicial process of another country. We take every opportunity to encourage the Colombian authorities to allow access for all to legal representation, a fair trial without prejudice and minimise delays.