Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of UK nationals being subjected to state sanctioned torture; and what steps he is taking to protect UK nationals in cases where there is a prima facie case of torture.

As reported in the FCDO Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report 2019, published in July 2020, between January and December 2019, British nationals reported 119 new allegations of torture or mistreatment overseas to consular staff. The assistance we can, and cannot, provide to British nationals abroad is set out in the publication: Support for British nationals abroad: A Guide on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/support-for-britishnationals-abroad-a-guide). This also sets out who we can help, and that the level and type of assistance we offer is tailored to the individual circumstances of each case and local conditions.

We take all allegations of torture and mistreatment very seriously and will follow up with action appropriate to the circumstances of the case. Although we cannot investigate torture or mistreatment allegations, with the individual's permission, we can raise them with the local authorities, demanding an end to the mistreatment, and that the incident is investigated and the perpetrators are brought to justice.