Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to secure the release of Andargachew Tsege in Ethiopia; and if he will make a statement.

I remain deeply concerned by the continued detention of British national Andargachew Tsege in Ethiopia and about his welfare. The Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon friend, the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond MP) spoke to the Ethiopian Foreign Minister on 30 June and made a public statement on 25 June. He made clear that Ethiopia’s failure to grant our repeated requests was unacceptable, and informed Dr Tedros that the lack of progress in the case risked undermining the UK’s relationship with Ethiopia. We will continue to press the Ethiopian government for regular consular access, for our concerns regarding Andargachew’s welfare to be addressed, for a clear and transparent legal process through which he can challenge his detention.