Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have a generic policy to guide their responses to mass atrocities and the determination of possible genocide; and, if not, what assessment they have made of the risk of inconsistent responses from the UK.

It is the policy of the British Government, that any judgment as to whether war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide have occurred is a matter for judicial decision after consideration of all the available evidence, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. This approach provides a clear, impartial, and independent measure of whether genocide has occurred.

As the majority of mass atrocities occur in and around conflict, the government believes a focus on conflict prevention is the best means to prevent most mass atrocities. Her Majesty's Government (HMG) adopts a whole-of-government effort, using our diplomatic, development, defence and law enforcement capabilities, to help find pathways to peace and stability.