Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he last met with his Guyanese counterpart; what the content of discussions at that meeting was; and if he will make a statement.

My rt hon. Friend, the Member for Richmond (Yorks), the former Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr Hague), met his Guyanese counterpart, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Minister of Foreign Affairs, at the eighth UK-Caribbean Ministerial Forum on 16-17 June 2014, which she co-chaired. The two day event focussed on economic development, energy, education and security.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, my hon. Friend, the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), recently issued a statement on 8 January 2015 concerning Guyana’s recent prorogation (suspension) of Parliament, and we welcome President Ramotar’s subsequent announcement that national and regional elections will be held in Guyana on 11 May 2015.

We will continue to engage regularly with Guyana on UK Government priorities.