Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that (1) the government of Turkey has taken steps to ban the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in that country, and (2) members of the HDP have been arrested and imprisoned.

We are concerned by the legal action taken against the People's Democratic Party (HDP) and its officials, including MPs and mayors, accused of alleged terrorist links. If those links are proved to be accurate, we urge the HDP to distance itself entirely from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its ongoing terrorist activity. We have made it clear to Turkey that we expect the government to undertake any legal processes or actions against opposition parties, MPs, party officials, elected mayors, human rights defenders and journalists, fairly, transparently and with full respect for the rule of law. My colleague the Minister for the European Neighbourhood and Americas raised these issues with the Turkish Ambassador on 30 March. Officials from the British Embassy in Ankara also regularly meet members of the HDP to discuss their concerns. Working with our international partners, we will continue to encourage Turkey, including at Ministerial level, to make greater progress on wider human rights reforms.