Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make it his policy to sign the Safe Schools Declaration to protect schools from being attacked or occupied for military purposes.

The intention of the Safe Schools Declaration is for countries to support the Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military use during Armed Conflict. While we welcome the spirit of the Declaration, we have concerns that the Guidelines do not mirror the exact language of International Humanitarian Law. We believe that better implementation of, and compliance with, existing International Humanitarian Law will provide the best protection for civilians, including children, in all situations of armed conflict.

The UK, along with the US, France, Canada, Japan, Germany, Australia and other countries, was therefore not able to sign the Safe Schools Declaration in Oslo in May 2015.