§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Which officials of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Department of Trade and Industry took part in a visit to Iran during February; what was the purpose of their visit; whether any of them raised human rights concerns; if so, which ones; and whether any of these officials or officials from the British Embassy in Tehran asked at any time to visit prisoners in Evin or any other prison. [HL1660]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanA team of six experts on non-proliferation issues from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Ministry of Defence and Department of Trade and Industry led by Paul Hare, Head of the Non-Proliferation Department of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office visited Tehran for58WA specialised discussions on non-proliferation issues with their Iranian counterparts on 10 February. Human rights concerns were not raised, as the discussions were solely on non-proliferation issues. We regularly raise human rights concerns with the Iranians in contacts of a broader political nature; for example when the Director (Middle East and North Africa) visited Tehran on 13/14 January.