Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the findings, reported by Klaas van Dijken and Abdulmoniem Suleiman in January, that key individuals in the government of Sudan are complicit in people smuggling and trafficking; what is their assessment of the extent to which the €100 million EU development package given to Sudan to tackle the flow of irregular migration has addressed that problem; and whether they regard the government of Sudan as part of the solution or part of the problem in combatting human trafficking.

We continue to raise our concerns with the Government of Sudan over allegations that some government officials are involved in the smuggling and trafficking of refugees. Reports such as those by Klaas van Dijken and Abdulmoniem Suleiman help us to engage constructively.

The EU has not yet published any results from its €100 million package. It is therefore too early to say what impact the funding has had. Sudan remains a significant source, transit, and host country for migration to the UK. It is vital that we continue to work on irregular migration with the Government of Sudan and with civil society representatives, both as part of the UK-Sudan Strategic Dialogue and under the umbrella of the Khartoum Process.