Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his oral contribution of 20 October 2015, Official Report, column 813, what discussions he has had with ministers in the Turkish government on ensuring that freedom of the press is upheld in that country as it relates to citizens of any country.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers and officials regularly encourage Turkey to continue to work towards the full protection of fundamental rights, including the principles of freedom of expression and freedom of the press. I discussed these issues, in the context of Turkey’s accession to the EU, when I last met my Turkish counterpart in August this year.