Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential risk to the (a) governance and (b) stability of the Central African Republic if the constitution is revised to remove the Presidential term limit; and what steps the UK can take with (i) regional and (ii) continental partners to support (A) their input into any constitutional revision process and (B) freedom, fairness and peacefulness in any subsequent referendum.

Alongside our partners in the international community, the UK is currently monitoring proposals to revise the constitution and Presidential term limit in the Central African Republic.

We recognise the importance of democratic processes and the potential impact of any constitutional changes, including the removal of Presidential term limits, and their implications for democratic and judicial institutions in the Central African Republic. In partnership with the international community, the UK Government will monitor the situation in country from our Embassy in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo.