{"value":{"id":418779,"askingMemberId":738,"askingMember":null,"house":"Lords","memberHasInterest":false,"dateTabled":"2015-09-15T00:00:00","dateForAnswer":"2015-09-29T00:00:00","uin":"HL2214","questionText":"To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for International Development, Desmond Swayne, on 11 September (HC8462), which states that the government of Pakistan has publicly recognised \"the problems facing minorities, and the need to bring an end to religious persecutions\", why the current Home Office guidance <i>Pakistan: Christians and Christian Converts</i> states that \"there are a large number of Christians in the country and the evidence does not indicate that Christians are, in general, subject to a real risk of persecution or inhuman or degrading treatment\"; and whether, in the light of the most recent evidence, they now plan to revise this guidance.","answeringBodyId":1,"answeringBodyName":"Home Office","isWithdrawn":false,"isNamedDay":false,"groupedQuestions":[],"answerIsHolding":false,"answerIsCorrection":false,"answeringMemberId":1091,"answeringMember":null,"correctingMemberId":null,"correctingMember":null,"dateAnswered":"2015-09-22T00:00:00","answerText":"<p>The UK recognises there may be individual cases of religious persecution. However, not all Christians are at risk. It is important to carefully consider each case on its merits.</p><p>This position was confirmed by the courts in December 2014 in the country guidance case ‘AK and SK (Christians: risk) Pakistan CG [2014] UKUT 569 (IAC)’.</p><p>Therefore, whilst the Home Office is always reviewing country of origin information and the accompanying guidance on a particular issue, its position is consistent with the statement made by the Minister of State for International Development, Desmond Swayne, on 11 September.</p>","originalAnswerText":"","comparableAnswerText":"","dateAnswerCorrected":null,"dateHoldingAnswer":null,"attachmentCount":0,"heading":"Immigration Controls: Pakistan","attachments":[],"groupedQuestionsDates":[]},"links":[{"rel":"self","href":"/Questions/418779","method":"GET"}]}