Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with his Nicaraguan counterpart on reinstating the legal status of the Nicaraguan Red Cross Association.

The unjustified decision of 10 May 2023 by Nicaragua's National Assembly to rescind the legal status of the Nicaraguan Red Cross Association and confiscate its assets is deeply regrettable. This closure is part of a wider set of actions by the Nicaraguan authorities directed against non-profit organisations and charitable institutions, through which more than 3,000 institutions have been closed since 2018. In a statement released on 19 April 2023, the UK underlined its deep concern at these closures and at the wider political situation in Nicaragua, which is shared by the international community.