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 implications for his Department's policies of (a) prosecutions of opposition party leaders and (b) levels of repression of civil society groups in Georgia.

I am seriously concerned by the recent sentences imposed on several prominent Georgian opposition figures. These are clearly politically motivated and aimed at blocking the political opposition from future elections. On 23 June I called on Georgian Dream to end its misuse of the courts to silence dissent, and free all political prisoners. In addition, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office summoned the Georgian Chargé d'Affaires on 30 June, to make clear the UK's firm opposition to Georgia's increasingly harmful trajectory. We continue to keep the worsening situation in Georgia under close review. On 1 July I chaired an emergency meeting with like-minded European democracies on Georgia to discuss our assessment of the situation and actions in response.

On 15 May I raised my wide-ranging concerns about recent repressive legislation on civil society and the media; restrictions on freedom of assembly and arbitrary arrests; and growing anti-Western rhetoric from high-level representatives of Georgian Dream. On 18 June I discussed my concerns about Georgian Dream's repressive legislation to restrict civil society, media, and opposition voices with Georgian 5th President Zourabichvili, and expressed my support for her work supporting democracy in Georgia. On 26 June our Ambassador to Georgia raised concerns about attacks on civil society, media and non-governmental organisations with Georgian Dream Foreign Minister Botchorishvili. We continue to keep a range of options under active review working with our partners to respond to the latest actions.

The UK's support for Georgia's Euro-Atlantic aspirations remains steadfast, and we stand ready to assist in a return to its European values and democratic norms.