Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to review their relationship with the government of Iran, including considering firmer sanctions.

Since the election of President Rouhani in 2013, we have been working to improve the UK-Iran relationship for the benefit of both countries. We intend, following Iran’s assurances that UK staff in Iran would be safe and able to carry out their functions, to reopen our Embassy in Tehran as soon as practical arrangements allow. A global diplomatic presence is a key component of UK foreign policy. Nevertheless, there will continue to be range of issues on which the UK and Iran disagree. Restored embassies will enable us to better understand these differences and to work more effectively to tackle them.

Along with our E3+3 partners, the UK remains committed to reaching a comprehensive nuclear agreement with Iran which ensures that their nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful. Failure to reach a settlement would lead to the re-imposition of sanctions suspended under the interim deal and consideration of further sanctions pressure.