Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the human rights situation in Turkey during negotiations on the proposed EU-Turkey refugee deal.

I refer my Rt Hon. Friend to the Written Ministerial Statement made by the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) on 8 March 2016 which detailed his discussions, including on human rights issues, with his EU counterparts during negotiations on the proposed EU-Turkey deal. In addition, in the conclusions adopted by the European Council at its meeting on 17-18 March, the EU reiterated that it expects Turkey to respect the highest standards when it comes to democracy, rule of law and respect of fundamental freedoms, including freedom of expression.