Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy of the needs identified by Open Doors in its report on freedom of religion and the persecution of Christians published in March 2014.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) works closely with Open Doors. My Noble Friend, the Rt Hon. Baroness Anelay met with Open Doors in October. We value the regular updates they give us on the situation facing persecuted Christians across the world, in particular through their annual report, published in March 2014. We share the view expressed in the Open Doors report that the persecution of Christians and other minorities worldwide is increasing.

Freedom of religion or belief is a human rights priority for the Government. We take action to defend it in individual country situations and through multilateral bodies such as the UN and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. We fund project work and have been providing religious literacy training to our staff. We regularly urge governments to ensure the protection of all religious minorities. We encourage them to develop inclusive political systems that are for the good of all citizens.