§ Mr. Laurence RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Iran about human rights in that country; and if he will make a statement. [149198]
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§ Mr. WilsonWe and our EU partners take every appropriate opportunity to press the Iranian authorities over our concerns about human rights issues in Iran. The Foreign Secretary raised human rights matters with his counterpart, Dr. Kharrazi, when they met in New York on 15 September and with the Iranian Ambassador to London on 4 October. More recently, my hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Mr. Hain) discussed human rights concerns with Ambassador Sarmadi on 22 January. In conjunction with our EU partners, we also table twice yearly UN Resolutions on Human Rights in Iran. The most recent resolution, reflecting both positive developments and remaining concerns, was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 4 December.