I am pleased to announce that on 12 December my noble Friend Lord West of Spithead, Under-Secretary of State with responsibility for security and counter-terrorism and Dr Tekeda Alemu, Ethiopian Deputy Foreign Minister, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia concerning the provision of assurances in respect of persons subject to deportation on grounds of national security.

Associated side letters recording the position of the two Governments on the application of the death penalty and the terms of reference for the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission’s role as monitoring body have also been exchanged.

This agreement is a practical demonstration of the growing relationship between the UK and Ethiopia in countering terrorism.

Copies of the Memorandum of Understanding and the associated side letters have been placed in the Library of both Houses and on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website.