Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Turkish counterpart on the undemocratic banning of the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) for advocating for ethnic and religious minority rights in Turkey.

The UK Government expects Turkey, as a modern democracy, to undertake any legal processes against the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) transparently and with full respect for the rule of law. I raised these issues with the Turkish Ambassador on 30 March. Our Embassy in Ankara also engages regularly with the HDP to discuss their concerns. We strongly support all minority groups in Turkey, and encourage the Turkish authorities to safeguard their welfare and respect their human rights.