Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Ethiopian counterpart on the detention of Andargachew Tsege.

I remain deeply concerned by the continued detention of British national Andargachew Tsege in Ethiopia and about his welfare. Over the last year, there have been numerous discussions between the Ethiopian and UK government regarding Mr Tsege. The Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon friend, the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond MP) spoke to the Ethiopian Foreign Minister on 24 June and made a public statement on 25 June. He made clear that Ethiopia’s failure to grant our repeated requests was unacceptable, and informed Dr Tedros that the lack of progress in the case risked undermining the UK’s relationship with Ethiopia. We will continue to press the Ethiopian government for regular consular access, for our concerns regarding Mr Tsege’s welfare to be addressed, and for a clear and transparent legal process through which Mr Tsege can challenge his detention.