Diplomatic Immunity
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many Special Mission Immunity certificates have been (a) applied for by and (b) granted to each state since 4 March 2013.
Answered by Catherine West
Government officials from any country can apply for and be granted special mission certificates as part of official visits to the UK. As set out in a Written Ministerial Statement by the former Foreign Secretary dated 4 March 2013, a special mission is a temporary mission, representing a State, which is sent by one State to another with the consent of the latter, in order to carry out official engagements on behalf of the sending State. Since 4 March 2013, the FCDO has received 68 requests for special missions, of which certificates were issued for visits from the following states: Egypt 35 certificates, Iran 1 certificate, Israel 16 certificates, Qatar 2 certificates, Rwanda 1 certificate and Saudi Arabia 3 certificates. Certificates were not issued for visits that did not meet the criteria for special missions, as set out by the former Foreign Secretary in 2013.
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