Press release

Lord Ahmad appointed as PM鈥檚 Special Envoy to promote religious freedom

Lord Ahmad given role as Prime Minister鈥檚 Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief.

This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

Lord Ahmad has today been appointed as the Prime Minister鈥檚 Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief.

皇冠体育app role, which supports the Prime Minister鈥檚 commitment to religious tolerance in the UK, will allow Lord Ahmad to demonstrate the country鈥檚 commitment to religious freedom by promoting inter-faith respect and dialogue internationally.

Lord Ahmad, who is also Minister of State for the Commonwealth and the UN at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, will promote the UK鈥檚 firm stance on religious tolerance abroad, helping to tackle religious discrimination in countries where minority faith groups face persecution.

皇冠体育app appointment underscores the Prime Minister鈥檚 commitment to tackling religious prejudice in all its forms and follows the government鈥檚 recent announcement of a further 拢1 million funding for places of worship that have been subjected to hate crime attacks.

Prime Minister 皇冠体育appresa May said:

Religious discrimination blights the lives of millions of people across the globe and leads to conflict and instability. Both here and abroad, individuals are being denied the basic right of being able to practise their faith free of fear.

Tolerance for those of different faiths is fundamental to our values, and is an issue I know is already of great importance to Lord Ahmad, who is constantly looking for fresh ways to promote religious liberty in his role as Minister for Human Rights at the Foreign Office.

I look forward to supporting him in this new role as he works with faith groups and governments across the world to raise understanding of religious persecution and what we can do to eliminate it.

皇冠体育app PM鈥檚 Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon said:

In too many parts of the world, religious minorities are persecuted, discriminated against and treated as second class citizens. As a man of faith, I feel this very keenly.

Freedom of Religion or Belief is a human right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It must be respected. People from all faiths or none should be free to practise as they wish. This respect is key to global stability, and is in all our interests.

I am delighted to have been appointed as the PM鈥檚 Special Envoy. I shall use the UK Government鈥檚 global network to reach across religious divides, seek the elimination of discrimination on the basis of religion or belief and bring different communities together.

Updates to this page

Published 4 July 2018