Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether and how the government of President Assad in Syria threatens the national interest of the UK.

As the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), has said, Assad has been one of Daesh’s most effective recruiting sergeants. His regime’s brutal suppression of the Syrian people, including through the use of chemical weapons, has created the chaos and instability in which Daesh has been able to thrive. Defeating Daesh will require action on a number of fronts including, ultimately, a political transition to a new Syrian government which is able to protect the Syrian people and with whom the international community can partner against Daesh.