Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support freedom of the press in countries listed in the lowest category of the World Press Freedom Index, as compiled by Reporters Without Borders.

We are working to support media around the world to find sustainable models to work in challenging environments. As the Foreign Secretary affirmed at the World Press Freedom Day Conference on 9 December, the UK will use its G7 presidency to promote media freedom. The Foreign Secretary, along with the Minister of State responsible for Human Rights, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, also represented the UK at the virtual Global Conference on Media Freedom in November, where we recommitted members of the Media Freedom Coalition to working together to improve media freedom and the safety of journalists at home and abroad.

Our Overseas Development assistance programmes have included support to independent media in countries listed in the lowest category, such as in Iraq, where the Al-Mirbad radio station provides a vital public service, and Egypt, where we have funded capacity-building activities for local journalists. In Sudan, we are supporting journalists to report on the Covid-19 pandemic accurately and responsibly and are helping senior media leaders to find new models to help media business viability. We have also helped establish the Media Freedom Coalition, jointly co-chaired with Canada, to defend media freedom. The Coalition, whose membership has expanded, has issued statements on situations of concern including Egypt and Belarus. We are supporting the UNESCO Global Media Defence Fund who are providing support to journalists working in challenging situations.