Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Bangladesh and Myanmar counterparts as a result of the deal by those Governments to repatriate Rohingya refugees.

The Government has been clear throughout the current crisis that the Rohingya refugees who have fled into Bangladesh must be able to return to their homes in Burma safely, voluntarily and in dignity. The UK proposed and secured a UN Security Council Presidential Statement on 6 November which called for these conditions to be met and urged the Governments of Burma and Bangladesh to invite the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to participate fully in the implementation of any returns process.

Since Burma and Bangladesh signed an agreement to repatriate refugees on 23 November, the UK has made representations to both governments to implement the agreement in line with the UN Security Council Statement. The Minister for Asia and the Pacific raised the issue with Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs on 30 November 2017 and with its High Commissioner on 9 January,

The British Ambassador to Burma most recently pressed for UNHCR involvement in the repatriation process in his meeting with the Minister for the Office of the State Counsellor on 11 January.

We share the UN High Commissioner for Refugee's concerns regarding the risk of premature or precipitous returns, and assessment that conditions in Rakhine are not presently in place to enable safe and sustainable returns.

The UK will continue to work with our international partners to ensure any returns take place in line with international norms and under international monitoring.