Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what account she takes of promoting freedom of speech when deciding on allocations of overseas aid.

DFID promotes respect for human rights, including freedom of expression, through its partnerships with governments and, where necessary, raises issues of concern in collaboration with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Before providing aid to a foreign government, DFID assesses the government’s commitment to four partnership principles, one of which concerns human rights. Where we cannot provide aid directly to governments, we will find other ways to help poor people in those countries.