Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 July 2023 to Question 194645 on Bahrain: Prisoners, if he will publish his Department's assessment of what progress (a) has been made on and (b) on which areas of human rights by the Government of Bahrain.

The UK draws upon a range of sources when assessing the human rights situation in Bahrain. We welcome the positive steps taken by the Government of Bahrain leading to progress in a number of human rights areas, some of which have been directly supported by the UK. This includes the development of Alternative Sentencing legislation (which has benefitted over 5,650 individuals to date), the introduction of open prisons, the implementation of a new juvenile justice system, and the establishment of specialist human rights oversight bodies. The UK remains committed to supporting reforms in Bahrain and to encouraging the government to meet its human rights commitments.