(2) what representations his Department has made to the Congolese Government in relation to the participation of civil society and parliament in the review process for mineral concessions and contracts in Democratic Republic of Congo.
DFID and the FCO have raised concerns about the transparency of the review of mineral concessions with the relevant DRC authorities on numerous occasions. My colleague, Baroness Vadera, raised the mining review with the Vice-Minister of Mines during her recent visit to Kinshasa, and underlined the importance of transparency. We are not directly involved in the work of the DRC Government Commission which is undertaking the mining review, but fully recognise its importance for the future of the minerals sector. The review is vital for public confidence in DRC and investor confidence globally. While we believe that it is for the DRC Government to decide who should be involved in the review process, we will continue to use our channels with government, the private sector and civil society to push for the commission to carry out its work in the most transparent way possible.