Tunisia, and European Council

Crispin Blunt Excerpts

Monday 29th June 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank the hon. Lady for the way she put her question, because I share all the frustration of the families and the communities who want to get this information as fast as possible. Scotland’s Deputy First Minister, John Swinney, was in the Cobra conference by video-link to Scotland and raised some of those issues himself. Just to bring home the importance of not making an announcement before we have the information, I should say that two people who were down as missing and whom we were very concerned about turned up back in Britain today, having come home under means that we did not know about. The reason it is taking some time to identify the victims is twofold: people who were on the beach did not, quite understandably, have on them passports or means of identification; and, tragically, in some cases it is difficult to identify people after the horrific attacks that took place. In addition, the coroner in Tunisia, quite understandably, wants to make sure that no mistakes are made, so there is a full pathway from the moment of recognising the victim and all the coronial action that subsequently has to take place.

[Crispin Blunt (Reigate) (Con)]

Tunisia’s transition to democracy is the one ray of political light coming out of the Arab spring, but it is as fragile as Tunisia’s economy and security. While welcoming measures to support the fledgling democracy’s economic and security aspirations, will my right hon. Friend ensure that its political aspirations also receive support? Does he also recognise that by some accounts more than 20,000 Tunisians have been intercepted trying to join Daesh, some of whom are bound to have reached Libya? Is there any evidence that this attack was co-ordinated from outside Tunisia?

[The Prime Minister]

First, I agree with my hon. Friend that helping Tunisia on its political journey is as important as helping Tunisia’s economy and civil society, and we will certainly do that—I met the Tunisian ambassador shortly before coming to the House today to discuss these issues. In terms of the linkages of this attack, I think it is too early to say. I am sure that more work is being done now, and if there is anything else to tell the House I will come back at a subsequent opportunity. Where there is no doubt is on the fact that Libya, with its failed state and lack of a Government, has become a place where Islamist terrorists have got a foothold. There can be no doubt about that and while that is the case, other countries in the region, and indeed in the world, are at greater risk.