On 19 August, Venezuelan authorities closed part of the border with Colombia and declared a State of Exception (SoE) in some municipalities. The SoE now includes municipalities in the states of Zulia, Apure and Táchira and the border is now closed in five out of six of Colombia’s departments. The Colombian Ministry of Defence reported that, on 13 September, unauthorised Venezuelan military aircraft entered Colombian airspace. Our Embassies in Bogotá and Caracas are monitoring the situation closely.

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian affairs reported that over 20,000 Colombians have left Venezuela in four weeks, over 1,500 of whom were deported. There are ongoing reports of humanitarian concerns, that many of those deported have had their houses destroyed and there have been other complaints of serious mistreatment.

I welcome the talks between the two governments’ respective Foreign Ministers, sponsored by Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), on 12 September, and the announcement that President Santos and President Maduro have agreed to hold bilateral talks. I hope that a diplomatic solution can be found to end the current crisis.

Her Majesty's Ambassador in Caracas most recently discussed human rights with the Venezuelan Foreign Minister on 31 January. This follows his discussions with the Vice Foreign Minister on the same subject in December.

I remain concerned about the situation in Venezuela. I have written to the Venezuelan government, and have discussed regional efforts to promote political dialogue in the country with Ministers from across Latin America.

I remain deeply concerned about the situation in Venezuela. I am saddened by the deaths that have occurred since protests started in February, and condemn all acts of violence. I am concerned by reports of excessive use of force in protests, and of armed groups using violence, and I call on all sides to show restraint.

I wrote to the Venezuelan ambassador, and most recently to Mr Alvaro Sanchez, the chargé d’affaires, on 24 March 2014 to raise my concerns and to emphasise the need for a peaceful dialogue. I have also spoken to Ministers across the region, including during my recent visit to South America, to reiterate this message. In addition, as recently as 6 June, the Director for Americas raised human rights with opposition and civil society representatives during a visit to Caracas. Foreign and

Commonwealth Office officials maintain a regular dialogue with the Venezuelan embassy in London regarding these issues.

I remain deeply concerned about the situation in Venezuela. I am saddened by the deaths that have occurred since protests started in February, and condemn all acts of violence. I am concerned by reports of excessive use of force in protests, and of armed groups using violence, and I call on all sides to show restraint. I am also aware that legal action and investigations are under way. It is critical that due process is followed.

I support the efforts by Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Vatican to support and advise on dialogue between the parties. I have spoken to colleagues in the region, including during my recent visit to South America, to urge their governments to promote dialogue. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has already called on all actors to engage in a dialogue aimed at finding common ground. The UK has no current plans to raise the situation further at the United Nations.

I will continue to monitor the situation carefully.

I remain deeply concerned about the situation in Venezuela where protests have been ongoing since early February. I am saddened by the deaths that have occurred and condemn all acts of violence.

I welcome the meetings that have now been held between the Government and Opposition which are an important step towards genuine dialogue. I support the work of the commission of Foreign Ministers from the Union of South American Nations, whose role is to support and advise on dialogue, as well as the involvement of the Vatican.

In my statement of 26 March I called for all sides to take steps to avoid confrontation, reduce tensions and create the right conditions for genuine dialogue. I have written to the Venezuelan Government emphasising the importance of respecting peaceful protest and offered the UK's assistance in the reconciliation process.

I am deeply concerned about the reports of violence associated with protests in various cities in Venezuela since early February and call on all sides to refrain from violence. I receive regular reports on the situation from our embassy in Caracas.

The majority of the demonstrations, including large-scale gatherings organised by the Government or by the opposition, have been peaceful, but some disturbances have been marred by violence. The number and frequency of the incidents have decreased over the last few weeks, but there are still violent incidents. To date, at least 41 people have died and more than 650 have been injured since the start of protests. About half the victims are anti-government protestors and the rest pro-government supporters, security forces or bystanders. Around 2,500 people have been detained and around 200 people remain in custody, including police officers and students. The authorities are investigating around 100 cases of reported human rights abuses.

It is important that the Venezuelan Government respects the right to protest peacefully, ensures public security and due process is afforded in investigations. I welcome

the meetings held between the Government and opposition which are an important step towards genuine dialogue. We continue to monitor the situation closely and keep travel advice for British nationals under constant review.

Will the Minister give us an update on the political situation in Venezuela, and tell us what prospects he sees for dialogue and an end to violence? What action are the UK Government taking in relation to that?

As I said in my statement of 26 March, I am deeply concerned about the situation in Venezuela. I am saddened by the deaths that have occurred, and condemn all acts of violence.

We have called for all sides to take steps to avoid confrontation, reduce tensions and to create the right conditions for genuine dialogue to take place. I have written to the Venezuelan Government to convey this message and offered the UK's assistance in the reconciliation process. I have spoken to ministerial colleagues in the region, both during my visit to South America and during the Union of South .American Nations (UNASUR) commission's visit, to encourage their governments to help promote dialogue in Venezuela. Our embassy in Caracas urges peaceful dialogue through its contacts with a range of actors in Venezuelan society.

A commission of foreign ministers from the UNASUR group of countries visited Caracas 26-27 March to support and advise on dialogue between the parties. I welcome this positive first visit which involved meetings with a range contacts, including with President Maduro, opposition leaders and civil society representatives.

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), commented on the situation in Venezuela on 18 February, during an official visit to Brazil. He expressed concern at the reports of violence associated with protests and the arrests of students and opposition politicians. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs highlighted the importance of freedom of expression and of the press and the right to protest peacefully.

I have written to the Venezuelan embassy in London emphasising the importance of respecting peaceful protest and creating the right conditions for dialogue to take place between the parties. 1 have also asked to speak to my Venezuelan opposite number. I will continue to monitor the situation carefully, and call on all sides to refrain from violence, to reduce tensions and to create the conditions for genuine dialogue.

EU High Representative Catherine Ashton also made statements on 14 and 21 February regarding the situation in Venezuela on behalf of all member states. The Government fully supports those statements.

I am deeply concerned about the reports of violence associated with protests in various cities in Venezuela since early February. I receive regular reports on the situation from our embassy in Caracas.

The majority of the demonstrations, including large-scale gatherings organised by the Government or by the opposition, have been peaceful, but some disturbances have been marred by violence. At least 30 people have been killed and over 350 injured. About half the victims are anti-government protestors, but members of the

police and national guard, pro-government supporters and bystanders have also been killed. According to official figures, there have been over 1,600 detainees, out of which around 1,300 have been released on parole and await trial. Over 100 remain in detention also awaiting trial. Over 40 police officers are being investigated for using excessive force in dealing with protestors, of which 15 have been detained.

The number and frequency of the incidents has decreased in the last two weeks but there are still violent incidents. We continue to the monitor the situation carefully, and call on all sides to refrain from violence, to reduce tensions and to create the conditions for genuine dialogue.

The UNASUR group of South American countries agreed on 12 March to send a commission of Foreign Ministers to Venezuela by early April to accompany, support and advise a broad and constructive process of political dialogue. We hope that this can play a positive role in helping to prevent violence and to promote reconciliation in Venezuela.

The UK urges all parties in Venezuela to work together to reduce tension and promote political reconciliation, particularly around the municipal elections on 8 December. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), wrote to the Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua on 18 November to express our hope that the UK and Venezuela can work to further our existing areas of bilateral cooperation. I also wrote to my counterpart and offered to discuss our relationship in more detail. Our ambassador in Caracas has had a number of discussions with government representatives and others about the electoral process and the importance of building bridges between all parts of Venezuelan society.

There was no full observer mission covering the campaign or the presidential elections in Venezuela, which took place on 7 October. The Venezuelan National Electoral Council (CNE) invited representatives from the Union of South American Nations to accompany them in the period immediately around the elections.

The CNE and political parties also invited individuals from a number of international political groups and NGOs.

The EU was not invited by the Venezuelan election authorities to send an observation mission, but we, and EU partners, followed events closely on the ground.