Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of Egypt on recent UN reports of human rights abuses in that country.

We are aware of recent statements by UN special rapporteurs expressing concern at restrictions placed on human rights defenders and civil society in Egypt. In December, the spokesperson for the then UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, expressed concern over the arrest of prominent Egyptian human rights defender Azza Soliman.

We are concerned about the decreasing space for civil society to operate in Egypt. Ministers and senior officials regularly raise our concerns with the Egyptian authorities in both London and Cairo. During my meeting with the Egyptian Ambassador on 8 December, I raised our concerns about the arrest of human rights defender Azza Soliman. In the same meeting I reiterated concerns, outlined in my statement from 1 December, about a proposed new law on Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

We have also raised our concerns about human rights at the UN. During the most recent session of the UN's Human Rights Council in September we raised concerns about restrictions on civil society in both our national statement and through the EU statement.

We will continue to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt closely, and to urge the Egyptian government to ensure full implementation of the provisions for the free operation of civil society, contained in the constitution, including through a revised NGO law that conforms to international standards and protects freedom of expression.