Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that members of Pakistan’s main opposition, Pakistan Tehreek Insaf, have been detained without legal representation.

As the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have said, the UK has a close and longstanding relationship with Pakistan. We are aware of recent reports of arrests in Pakistan and continue to monitor the situation closely. I spoke to the High Commissioner for Pakistan to the UK, Moazzam Ahmad Khan on 9 May and to Hina Rabbani Khar, Pakistan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, on 10 and 13 May, emphasising the importance of peaceful democratic processes and adherence to the rule of law.