Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the UK Government is providing to the Tunisian government in advance of the presidential elections in that country in November 2014.

The British Government has provided significant support for Tunisia since its 2011 revolution. When the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) met the Tunisian Deputy Foreign Minister at our Bilateral Forum earlier this month he congratulated him on Tunisia’s successful Legislative elections and reiterated our support. Bilaterally, our Arab Partnership programmes have supported political participation, good governance, transparency, and freedom of expression. On elections we have supported programmes on voter awareness and registration campaigns. We have provided financial support including through the UN for technical advice and operational support to the Independent Electoral Commission (ISIE). We have also supported civil society in monitoring campaign finances for both the legislative and presidential campaigns. Our support for economic development has been primarily channelled through multilateral donors. This support will continue, including in the period leading up to the Presidential elections.