Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office written question – answered at on 1 June 2026.
Brendan O'Hara
Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Cabinet Office), Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Middle East)
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report by the Independent Delegation of International Lawyers to Honduras, entitled "Our Determination Outweighs Our Fear": Agrarian conflict and the criminalisation of Indigenous and campesino communities, published in April 2026, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that UK companies with (a) investments, (b) direct operations and (c) supply chain links in Honduras are undertaking enhanced human rights and environmental due diligence, particularly in the agro-industrial and extractive sectors.
Brendan O'Hara
Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Cabinet Office), Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Middle East)
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report by the Independent Delegation of International Lawyers to Honduras published in April 2026, what representations her Department has made to the government of Honduras on the protection of Indigenous leaders, campesino communities and human rights defenders from violence, attacks and forced eviction.
Chris Elmore
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 28 April, the Minister of State for International Development met with Peace Brigades International and Honduran human rights defenders in London to discuss the report in question, and she reinforced the UK's calls for stronger protections for human rights defenders and indigenous groups in Honduras.
All UK companies operating overseas, including those with investments, direct operations, and supply chain links in Honduras, are expected to respect human rights in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
Through the Trade Strategy, the Government is reviewing its approach to responsible business conduct, including options to strengthen human rights and environmental due diligence in global supply chains. The Department for Business and Trade will update the House in due course.
Yes2 people think so
No0 people think not
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Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.