Iran

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Tuesday 13th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

I can reassure my hon. Friend that we take immensely seriously the state-backed threats here in the UK, including the Iranian-backed threats against Jewish communities in the UK and its own nationals in the UK as part of the transnational repression. That is why, as well as sanctioning the IRGC and putting it on the enhanced tier of FIRS, we have substantially increased the training for police forces across the country on state-backed threats. This is something that our counter-terrorism police, who do an excellent job, take immensely seriously.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Right now, peaceful protesters who are unarmed are being gunned down on the streets not just of Tehran, but of every city and town in Iran. They are being hunted down to hospitals if they are injured, or hunted down to where they live. The difference between 2022 and now is that this is a nationwide protest calling for regime change. What people desperately want to hear—I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s statement—is not more words, but action. We are told repeatedly that the Home Office and the Foreign Office cannot agree on proscription of the IRGC, but could the Foreign Secretary go away, speak to the Home Secretary and get that organised now as a demonstration that we will not tolerate this, and that we will stand four-square behind those brave people of Iran who just want liberty and freedom?

[Yvette Cooper]

The hon. Member is right to talk about the difference being the way that this has spread right across Iran, including small towns in different parts of Iran as well as the capital city. On proscription, there is clear, strong agreement between the Home Office and the Foreign Office about the importance of ensuring that we have the right tools to deal with state-backed threats, just as we have for terrorism threats. That is what the Jonathan Hall review was all about. I gently remind the hon. Member that the previous Government did not address this issue, and did not change the legislation for many years. I know that is something he has highlighted over many years, and I hope there will be cross-party agreement on the importance of addressing it.