Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government why Mr Shaker Aamer, the British resident detained at Guantanamo Bay, has not yet been released; what were the last representations they made on his behalf; and what was the reply to them.

Decisions over the release of Mr Aamer rest entirely with the United States government. The British government has made clear to the United States that we want Mr Aamer released and returned to the UK. The United States government has made clear to us that they understand our position. The then Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), last raised Mr Aamer’s case in a letter to US Secretary of State, John Kerry, at the end of last month.