Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Serbian government on (a) human, (b) civil and (c) political rights in that country.

The Foreign Secretary and I underlined the UK's strong support for fundamental rights and the rule of law, and the important role of civil society in Serbia during our respective visits to Belgrade earlier this year. In the context of continuing protests, we continue to stress to the Serbian leadership that, in any society, it is important that the rights to peaceful freedom of expression and assembly are respected. We continue to raise these issues via our Ambassador in Belgrade, and discussions with ministerial counterparts.