Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her international counterparts on the protection of Christians in Sri Lanka.

The UK supports the right to freedom of religion or belief for all and regularly raises the importance of religious tolerance and the protection of rights for all Sri Lankans to practise their faith. Our High Commission in Colombo regularly meet government and religious leaders, including affected minorities and civil society, to hear their concerns and support interfaith dialogues and counter discrimination work based on religion or belief. During her visit to Sri Lanka in January 2025, the former Minister for the Indo-Pacific met activists working on freedom of religion or belief issues to reaffirm the UK's commitment to protecting these fundamental rights. More recently, the Minister for the Indo-Pacific met the Sri Lankan Speaker, Justice Minister and wider ministerial delegation in October and discussed the importance of respecting human rights and having an inclusive and transparent process as part of Sri Lanka's reconciliation.