To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions she has had with her European Union counterparts on the European Convention on Cybercrime; and if she will make a statement. (274245)

The Government are committed to ratifying the Council of Europe Cybercrime Convention. We are currently working through the formal UK process of ratification, during which we will lay the required explanatory memorandum before Parliament to obtain approval for ratification. If Parliament agrees to ratification, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will then commence the formal ratification process with the Council of Europe.

We hope to complete the parliamentary process by the summer recess and the Council of Europe process within two months of that.

We are pleased that all of the EU member states have signed the convention and that a number have completed ratification. We work closely with our EU partners to tackle cybercrime, at ministerial, official and law enforcement levels.