Brexit: Northern Cyprus

Lord Sharkey Excerpts

Thursday 14th September 2017 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Goldie]

The general position of the United Kingdom is that we continue to support all efforts towards a just and lasting Cyprus settlement on both a bilateral basis, in so far as that is available to us, and, of course, within the forum of the United Nations. We are encouraging both sides to reflect calmly on the way forward and see rhetoric as serving only to limit the possibility of future talks towards a settlement. The UK is contributing in a number of ways, including through our deployment of military personnel to the peacekeeping force.

[Lord Sharkey (LD)]

My Lords, since April passengers on flights to the UK from Northern Cyprus have had to deplane in Turkey and go through additional security checks. I understand that is necessary because our aviation security people do not have sight of the security arrangements in Northern Cyprus. Can the Minister say what conversations we have had with officials in Northern Cyprus to remedy the situation so that normal flight arrangements can be restored?

[Baroness Goldie]

The safety and security of the public are the primary concern of the United Kingdom Government, and we will not hesitate to put in place any measures that we believe are necessary, effective and proportionate. As a result of consultations with the Department for Transport, Pegasus Airlines took the decision to introduce additional security checks on passengers transiting in Turkey on flights from Ercan to Stansted. I repeat: the United Kingdom’s primary focus is on the safety and security of the public.