News story

Foreign Secretary welcomes announcement by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia

Foreign Secretary William Hague commented on the reports of a proposal for women in Saudi Arabia to be given the right to vote and run in future municipal elections.

• From: Foreign & Commonwealth Office and The Rt Hon William Hague
• Published: 25 September 2011

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Speaking today, the Foreign Secretary said:

“I welcome the reports of a proposal for women in Saudi Arabia to be given the right to vote and run in future municipal elections. This would be a significant step forward for the people of Saudi Arabia. The UK strongly supports moves to increase the political and economic participation of women across the Arab world. We look forward to examining the full details of the proposed changes and how they will work in practice.”

Published 25 September 2011