Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which countries he has identified as actively persecuting LGBT citizens; and what discussions he has had with his counterparts in those countries relating to such persecution.

Defending the rights of LGB&T people is an important part of the Foreign & Commonwealth Office's human rights work. There are many countries in which LGB&T people are discriminated against, including by the state. For example, there are 73 countries that criminalise private, consensual sexual relations between adults of the same sex. All UK Embassies and High Commissions monitor and raise human rights issues in their host countries. We will continue to encourage all governments to respect the rights of LGB&T people, especially those that criminalise homosexuality and those that fail to defend the rights of LGB&T people against social prejudice and violence.