Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the legitimacy of the recent elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

We remain concerned about reported discrepancies between results for Presidential, Parliamentary and Provincial elections held on 30 December 2018, and parallel tallies conducted by respected independent observers. We joined others in calling upon CENI (the DRC's electoral commission) to publish its data, which is a crucial step towards providing the stability that the DRC and the region needs. We have also voiced our concern through diplomatic channels, including at the UN Security Council and the EU.

The Congolese people clearly voted for change on 30 December. Following the inauguration of Felix Tshisekedi as President on 24 January 2019, we are engaging with his team to understand their plans for improving the DRC's stability and prosperity.