Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether consular cases where a UK citizen is being tortured or is at risk of torture are treated differently to other consular cases; and in what way they differ.

The FCDO aims to assess the needs of all individuals promptly and provide effective assistance based on their individual circumstances and local conditions. The FCDO considers that someone is vulnerable when they cannot protect themselves from significant physical or emotional harm, or be protected by others. There are many types of consular cases involving British nationals which we would almost always treat as vulnerable. This includes where an individual alleges torture and mistreatment.

We take all allegations or concerns of torture and mistreatment very seriously and will follow up with action appropriate to the circumstances of the case.