Imprisonment of Craig and Lindsay Foreman in Iran

Hamish Falconer Excerpts

Thursday 21st May 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Mr Hamish Falconer)]

I am grateful to my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe (Tony Vaughan), both for securing the debate and for his support for Craig, Lindsay and their family. I acknowledge the family’s presence, and join my hon. and learned Friend in recognising their remarkable determination; they have shown great courage in truly difficult circumstances.

This is a truly terrible case, and my thoughts are with the couple and their family at this incredibly difficult time. The Foreign Secretary and I are doing all we can to support them, and to press for Craig and Lindsay’s release. I am grateful for the thoughtful contributions of Members on both sides of the House, and will do my best to respond to the points that have been raised.

The couple have been detained in Iran since January last year, and are being held in Evin Prison in Tehran. Recent developments have only added to the family’s distress. I spoke with Joe, who is with us today, and with Warren, Craig’s brother, on Monday. They told me that telephone contact between the couple and their family ceased almost two weeks ago, and that there are serious concerns for their health, now that they have both begun a hunger strike. My hon. and learned Friend asked whether I can provide an assurance that they are having adequate health monitoring. I cannot provide that assurance. The consular officials have not had access to the couple in some time, but we continue to press for that assurance and for access, very regularly, and I was discussing this matter with our ambassador to Iran just earlier today.

[Alicia Kearns]

I thank the Minister for saying that he is pressing on the matter, and that he has been talking to our ambassador, but can he tell the House when he last spoke to his Iranian counterpart, and how many times in the past three months he has raised the case with his Iranian counterpart? With all due respect, getting the couple home requires Government-to-Government negotiation.

[Mr Falconer]

I raised the case with the Iranian ambassador very recently—whenever I last saw him—and I have raised it in every single interaction I have had with him, but I reassure the hon. Lady that, as she knows, our ambassador to Tehran is a fully empowered representative of the British Government, and talks to the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the consular issues very regularly, to ensure that they are raised. This case has been raised at every single level, not just by me but by the Foreign Secretary with the Iranian Foreign Minister within the past fortnight, so there is no doubt in the Iranian Government’s mind about how seriously we take it.

Supporting British nationals overseas is of course a fundamental part of what we do, and we have been seeking to support Craig, Lindsay and their family throughout. I think my meeting on Monday was my seventh with the Foreman family, and the Foreign Secretary has met them twice. We will continue to provide consular assistance, and officials remain in close and very regular contact with Warren and Joe, to ensure that the family are kept informed and supported. We want to ensure that their concerns are understood and reflected in our approach. As I said to Joe and Warren earlier this week, I remain available to speak with them at any time. As I just said, we have repeatedly and consistently raised Craig and Lindsay’s case with the Iranian authorities at every appropriate level.

[Valerie Vaz (Walsall and Bloxwich) (Lab)]

This House has heard, sadly, the comments that the Minister has made about the Government pressing this case. He will know that it was pressure from this House, and from the families, that caused the release of the other hostages in Iran. Will he undertake, as the hon. Member for Rutland and Stamford (Alicia Kearns) suggested, to contact his counterpart at the end of this debate and ensure that the family get proper access to Craig and Lindsay Foreman? We will repeat their names in this House until they are released.

[Mr Falconer]

As I just said, we have and we will continue to raise this as regularly as possible with the Iranian authorities, both on some of the consular grounds that have been discussed, and in respect of the wider elements of the case. As the House knows, I cover many very difficult consular cases, and we have discussed others in this Chamber. It is not always public pressure that is most effective in securing releases. We have seen a range of releases across my wider area of responsibility during my time as Minister. Those releases are effected in a wide variety of ways, so I will always give families, and their constituency MPs when they are authorised to speak on their behalf, my best advice. It will not always be the case that public pressure is the best way to secure releases. I regret to say that the Iranian authorities appear to use detentions as a way to try to secure public, as well as private, leverage, and it is not always my advice that people should go public in response.

[Mims Davies]

The Minister is being very generous in giving way. Will he confirm on the Floor of the House that Craig and Lindsay Foreman are not spies?

[Mr Falconer]

I have said before that they are innocent tourists, and we stand by that position.

To respond to the point made by the hon. Member for Rutland and Stamford (Alicia Kearns), I see from my notes that the last time the Foreign Secretary raised this case was with the Iranian Foreign Minister on 8 May. I reassure her that Ministers are raising it very regularly at the highest level, despite the press of other business. As well as the ministerial level, there is the official level; officials will continue to work intensively on this, and raise the case at every opportunity with their Iranian counterparts. Although it is true that our embassy in Tehran remains temporarily closed because of the situation there, it continues to operate remotely. I reassure the House that we continue to raise this matter, despite that temporary closure. As I said earlier, our ambassador has pressed the Iranian authorities to restore telephone contact with the family, to allow Craig and Lindsay to see one another, and to ensure access to appropriate medical care and essential welfare items.

As I know my hon. Friends will recognise, and as we have discussed privately, cases of this nature are complex and highly sensitive. When British nationals are detained overseas, they are, of course, subject to the legal system of the country in which they are held. However, we consistently advocate for fair treatment, due process and respect for the international obligations set out in the UN minimum standards, often known as the Mandela rules. As I have said, in Iran, engagement must be handled with particular care. We are balancing private engagement and public channels to ensure that we do not inadvertently make the situation more difficult for Craig and Lindsay.

[Alicia Kearns]

Will the Minister give way?

[Mr Falconer]

I will, once I have made a little more progress. These cases rarely move quickly or predictably. Progress is often incremental, and requires sustained and patient engagement, and I assure the House that we are persistent and determined in our efforts.

[Tony Vaughan]

Will the Minister give way on the complexity of this case?

[Mr Falconer]

I think I probably have to take turns, so I will give way to the hon. Lady and then to my hon. and learned Friend.

[Alicia Kearns]

The Minister has made the point about public versus private, and what works. The French approach of declaring their person arbitrarily detained worked; they are home. On the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for East Grinstead and Uckfield (Mims Davies), given that the Minister has just recognised that Iranian law does not provide for a fair trial, and that we cannot recognise due process to have been followed, will the Minister at least declare on the Floor of the House that Craig and Lindsay are being arbitrarily detained?

[Mr Falconer]

I will try to make a little progress before I take the intervention from my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe. I am always reluctant, when at the Dispatch Box, to compare our diplomacy with that of our friends, partners and allies, but I say gently to the hon. Lady that the French case to which I think she is referring involved four years of detention in conditions that no one would want to see Craig and Lindsay in. I understand the point that she is making, but comparisons between cases are not easily made, and we have to use our best judgment and give our best advice to the families.

I recognise that the family have called for stronger public action, including a range of steps, some of which were outlined very clearly by my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe. As I have tried to make clear throughout my speech, we will give the family our best advice. It also falls to us to give our best judgment about what is in Craig and Lindsay’s interest. That is at the heart of our approach.

[Tony Vaughan]

Does the Minister agree that it is precisely because of the complexity of these cases, which potentially involve numerous different Government Departments, that we need an envoy for complex consular cases, who has not just the resources, but the authority to bring the Government together, and to act proactively to get such cases moving? Can he update the House on where that proposal is at, and whether there will be the framework and the powers to bring these sorts of cases forward? The Minister will be aware of matters that potentially concern other Government Departments in this case, and it may help if an individual has the authority, resources and powers to bring these sorts of cases forward. What are his thoughts on that?

[Mr Falconer]

I can confirm to my hon. and learned Friend and to the House that we are progressing the appointment of an envoy. One of the issues we have sought to navigate in the appointment of an envoy is that the Government and I recognise the responsibilities that the Foreign Secretary and I have to this House and to other Members, who will wish to represent their constituents appropriately in public, just as we are doing as we speak. There is therefore a balance to be struck in appointing an envoy with the ability to do all the things that my hon. Friend describes while not taking away from parliamentary accountability, which is a central pillar of our system. We are bringing forward that appointment, and I look forward to returning to the House with further details about it, and about the individual who I hope will take up that post.

I recognise that even during this short exchange, there have been differing views about the most effective ways to secure progress. That is entirely understandable in the circumstances. However, I wish to reassure my hon. and learned Friend and the family in the Gallery that every decision we take is guided by what we judge to be in Craig and Lindsay’s best interests. Our objective is clear: to work towards their return to their loved ones, and, until then, to ensure improvements in their welfare.

I remain deeply concerned for Craig and Lindsay Foreman, particularly in the light of recent developments affecting their health. We are working, and will continue to work, intensively through all appropriate channels to support Craig and Lindsay, improve their conditions and pursue their swift release.

Question put and agreed to.