Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking against the President of Belarus in response to the forced landing of the Ryanair flight in May 2021.

The Government is taking concrete and swift action in response to the forced landing of flight FR4978. Specific actions include the banning of all Belarusian aircraft from UK airspace without prior authorisation; suspension of the Belarusian national carrier's operating permit and advice to all UK airlines against overflying Belarus airspace. The UK also led in initiating a robust G7 statement in response to the forced landing of flight FR4978, and led calls for the investigation now launched by the International Civil Aviation Organization. As the Foreign Secretary made clear in his statement of 24 May, we are also consulting with allies on further measures against the regime in Belarus, including sanctions.