Drugs: Crime Prevention

(asked on 23rd June 2015) - View Source

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much financial aid the Government provides to support operational anti-narcotic services organised and implemented by states that support and implement the death penalty; and if she will make a statement.


Answered by
Mike Penning Portrait
Mike Penning
This question was answered on 26th June 2015

The Government provides counter-narcotics assistance to a range of international partners, including Pakistan. We do so to tackle the international drugs trade and minimise the threat it poses to the UK and its citizens. It is important to protect activities which form part of the UK's contribution to the international counter-narcotics effort and to respect the principle that international partners are able to operate in secrecy on matters of national security against organised crime. As such, it is our policy not to disclose details of financial assistance relating to our counter narcotics work, as to do so risks reducing its effectiveness and damaging international relations.

The Government strongly opposes the use of the death penalty in all circumstances and we are consistent in our communication on this issue. UK Ministers have and will continue to urge countries, including Pakistan, to repeal the death penalty and take action to ensure human rights are safeguarded.

When engaging internationally, all government departments must adhere to Overseas Security and Justice Assistance (OSJA) Guidance. This enables a comprehensive and ongoing assessment of the human rights risks attached to international activity. When the moratorium on the death penalty was lifted in Pakistan the Government reviewed its security engagement. Our engagement in Pakistan continues to be conducted in full accordance with the OSJA guidance, with respect for human rights as one of its core principles.

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