Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government's policy is on UK nationals running for office in the Overseas Territories.

Local governments of Overseas Territories (OTs) set their own rules on who can vote or can hold office in the OTs. In their report entitled "Global Britain and the British Overseas Territories: Resetting the relationship", the Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC) recommended that we initiate a consultation with the elected governments of the OTs to agree a plan to ensure that there is a pathway for all resident UK and British Overseas Territory citizens to be able to vote and hold elected office in territory. We will be considering this and its other recommendations and responding to the FAC in due course.