Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed reforms relating to Colombia's Special Jurisdiction for Peace and proposed budget allocations on the implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement, judicial independence and victims' rights.

The UK remains a leading international advocate of Colombia's 2016 Peace Agreement. As penholder on Colombia at the UN Security Council, we continue to support the work of the UN Verification Mission and engage regularly with the Government of Colombia and international partners on peace process issues. Since 2016, the UK has committed over £80 million to support implementation of the Agreement, including transitional justice, reintegration and the protection of conflict-affected communities. The UK continues to support transitional justice mechanisms established under the Agreement and emphasises the importance of victims' rights and the independence of these institutions. We remain committed to supporting independent monitoring of implementation through the UN Verification Mission and we support the new international verification mechanism for the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) sanctions. We are concerned by continuing violence affecting communities, victims, social leaders and former combatants, and regularly encourage Colombian authorities to strengthen protection measures, improve security guarantees and tackle the root causes of violence.