Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that female journalists are consulted on the UK's media freedom campaign; and what steps his Department is taking to promote that campaign at the London conference on media freedom in July 2019.

Female journalists in some parts of the world face the double burden of being attacked for their journalism and being attacked because of their gender. We are consulting extensively with civil society, journalists (with a special focus on female journalists), government partners and academia on the design of the Media Freedom Campaign, taking special note of the increased vulnerability of women journalists. We are exploring options for highlighting the increased risks faced by female journalists at the London conference in July 2019. We are also working with our embassies overseas to increase the spotlight on specific cases of abuse of female journalists' rights.