'They're not spies': Son urges Starmer to act as British couple face espionage charges in Iran

Joe Bennett has accused Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer of failing to do enough to secure the release of his parents, Lindsay and Craig Foreman, who were arrested in Iran in January while travelling by motorcycle to Australia. The Foremans deny the espionage charges, which rights groups and several MPs have described as baseless.

Bennett told Sky News that the UK Government had been "very passive" and should publicly defend the couple. "They've got two UK citizens that are accused of spying for the British state, but they're not coming out and defending them," he said. "You need to stand up for your citizens and call it out." He rejected the argument that publicity could harm their prospects of release, saying there was "no justification" for the Foreign Office’s cautious approach.

Current situation

In August the Foremans were moved between Tehran jails and later transferred to Evin prison, a facility notorious for holding political detainees and which was struck in June in an attack blamed on Israel. The family says Mrs Foreman is being kept in isolation without access to English speakers, while Mr Foreman is suffering from an untreated dental abscess. Despite reported assurances, the couple have not been allowed to meet each other.

The pair have attended two brief hearings — one on 27 September that lasted under three hours and another in late October — and began a hunger strike earlier this month in protest at their detention. Bennett described the hunger strike as "their cry for help" and warned ministers that merely "waiting for sentencing" could lead to catastrophe.

Broader context

Their detention follows recent changes in Iran's legal framework. President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a law described as intensifying punishment for "espionage and cooperation with the zionist regime and hostile countries," which took immediate effect. Legal experts have warned the legislation could impose severe penalties, including the death sentence, for actions that range from possessing satellite internet equipment to sharing images online.

Families of other detainees — including Richard Ratcliffe, whose wife Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was held in Iran for six years on what her supporters say were false charges — have criticised the Foreign Office for a lack of visible action. At a recent parliamentary hearing, relatives described a diplomatic void and a system that leaves loved ones effectively disappeared.

Family demands

The Foremans’ family is calling for immediate government intervention: a public condemnation of the detention, urgent diplomatic engagement with Tehran and regular consular access. The Foreign Office continues to warn British and dual British-Iranian nationals against travel to Iran because of a "significant risk of arrest, questioning, or detention."

"They’re not spies, it’s quite simple," Bennett said, urging ministers to act decisively to bring his parents home.