London, United Kingdom, 20 October 2026 (SPS) – The British government has reaffirmed that it continues to maintain contacts with the Polisario Front as part of its efforts to support the United Nations-led political process aimed at reaching a just, lasting and mutually acceptable solution to the question of Western Sahara.
The British position was outlined in a response by Stephen Doughty, Minister of State at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, to a parliamentary question submitted by Labour MP Brian Leishman, who represents the Alloa and Grangemouth constituency. The question concerned the government’s plans to hold further meetings with representatives of the Polisario Front and build on the meeting held last year.
Doughty explained that British officials had continued meeting representatives of the Front following a meeting hosted by the then Minister for the Middle East and North Africa in August 2025. He noted that the most recent contacts took place in London on 17 September and in New York on 8 October.
The British minister stressed that the United Kingdom continues to engage with all relevant parties in support of the UN-led process, with the aim of reaching a settlement based on consensus and mutual compromise that is just, lasting and acceptable to the parties, in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, including the principle of the right of peoples to self-determination.
The response comes amid continued parliamentary engagement in the United Kingdom on the question of Western Sahara, with Brian Leishman continuing to raise questions about the British government’s position and its role in supporting UN efforts to achieve a just and lasting solution that ensures the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination.
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