Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the adequacy of the preparations to ensure the (a) accountability, (b) transparency and (c) fairness of the forthcoming general election in Bangladesh; and if he will make a statement.

The UK is a strong supporter of plural, contested and transparent elections in Bangladesh, with free and fair process to support accountability. We regularly raise with the Government of Bangladesh, in public and private, the need to take meaningful steps to ensure a transparent and accountable electoral process in 2024. The Foreign Secretary met Prime Minister Hasina in May, and raised the importance of free, fair and participatory elections, and the need for inter-party dialogue. In June, Minister Trevelyan met with Bangladesh State Minister Alam and reiterated the need for ensuring the elections were transparent and accountable. We welcome Bangladesh's commitment to international election observation. Under the FCDO's five-year £23 million governance programme we have been identifying pre-election interventions including the potential for funding local elections observation. The UK will continue to engage with the Government of Bangladesh to support efforts towards a stable, prosperous and democratic Bangladesh.